Harry Potter and The Dark Soul
by yuriwarrior
Summary: Heavy AU, starting from Harry's fourth year. Harry has to face both new and old dangers and when a stranger offers to help, he gladly accepts. His view on magic will be changed forever. New friends will be made while matters of the heart will complicate things along the way. Times of war are coming and maybe, just maybe, Harry will survive to see the end of it all.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I'll only do this once but I do not own Harry Potter. It belongs to its rightful owner. I only own the plot and my original character.**

"_Why is it so hard to find someone  
Who cares about you?  
When it's easy enough to find someone  
Who looks down on you."_

_Someone Who Cares, Three Days Grace_

It was the last week of August, and as usual in the summer, he was not allowed to leave his room from his uncle and aunt. They even barricaded the little window. The only time he was allowed to leave it was when he had to do whatever they ordered him to do. This could range from cooking Dinner or preparing breakfast and mowing the lawn to cleaning the entire house in less than a day. Even though he could wield magic, he wasn't allowed to use it so he was defenseless whenever his Uncle decided to punish him because his steak wasn't cooked the way it was supposed to be or whatever reason he came up with to hit him. Over the years he grew accustomed to it, that didn't mean that it didn't hurt any less that his only relatives treated him like trash.

He didn't know why but for the last two days they didn't ask that much from him and he didn't want to leave his room even if he could. The less he saw them, the better. So he had spend the past two days reading and preparing for the upcoming year, hoping that it would be a calmer year than his three previous years at Hogwarts.

While he was reading in his Defense Against The Dark Arts textbook he began to reminisce about all the events that happened in his life. There was the obvious event that still left tears in his eyes every time he thought about it, Especially now that he had a glimpse of what had really happened that fateful night, albeit with the help of a Dementor. He saw a glimpse of his Mother, protecting him, begging Voldemort to take her life instead of killing her son. Even if the Dementor had nearly sucked his soul out, he was grateful. He now knew that at the very least his parents had cared for him, had loved him. _And see where that got them. _He thought bitterly, tears threatening to roll down his cheeks. His concentration to study completely lost he decided to close his book and with a deep sigh laid down in his bed, if one could even call it that, and stared at the ceiling.

He always doubted if his parents had loved him at all. It was perhaps stupid to think this but the only knowledge he had before his third year is that Voldemort killed them. He had stayed up countless of nights wondering why they didn't just run away from it all, find a safe place so they could live as a family, instead of sacrificing themselves just to save his life. It seemed the logical solution to him._ Perhaps he would've found us anyway. _Harry argued with himself and even though he still had a lot of question he at least knew that someone had loved him deeply. He still had a lot of questions though and would pay anything to spend some time with them, even though if it was only a minute.

He sighed again, trying to clear his mind of the sad memories from his mind. Which brought him to the start of his first year at Hogwarts, meeting the Weaslys, rescuing Hermoine from the troll in the bathroom, The Philosopher's Stone and most importantly his very first fight with Voldemort. Accepting the fact that in the wizarding world he was pretty much a celebrity, The-Boy-Who-Lived. In this year he had noticed that a lot of students were talking behind his back, something they'll probably do for many years to come. And even though he had somewhat befriended Ron and Hermoine he couldn't shake the feeling of being lonely. He couldn't shake the feeling that the first people he had ever befriended only saw him as The-Boy-Who-Lived too. He often caught the jealousy in Ron's voice or the bossy attitude Hermoine liked to use. He knew that he closed himself of to the outside world, more than eleven years at the Dursley's will do that to someone, and making friends wasn't one of his forte. He was at least happy that he had some sort of friendship with the two of them, it was better than nothing. He just wished that he could find someone who understood him, someone who was just as lonely as him…

His second year was more of a disaster in his opinion, with almost the entirety of the school turning against him because they thought he was the Heir of Slytherin and thought that he was the one petrifying everyone. The fight with the Basilisk was something he'd rather forget than relive, he still shuddered whenever he thought about the massive snake like creature. If it weren't for Fawkes and the sorting hat he wouldn't have made it out there alive.

His third year was probably the worst year so far. With Sirius Black escaping Azkaban who in the end turned out to be his godfather, which wasn't the worst by any means, he was happy he had Sirius, someone other than his parents that cared about him. The worst part about the third year is nearly getting his soul sucked out of his body by Dementors, twice.

He really wished his forth year would be a calm year for once, He just wanted to feel normal for one year. No Voldemort, dementors, giant spiders or basilisks, just him focusing on his grades to build his future. _One can only wish _he mused with a small smile. Without even knowing how late it was, he slowly closed his eyes. He only had one more week to go with the Dursley's and then he could finally go back to Hogwarts.

XXX

Fleur had already prepared everything for her seventh year at Beauxbatons and had already carefully packed everything so she didn't need to do it in a hurry. Not knowing what to do she decided to read a bit more about the maturing of Veela. Once she had turned fourteen her mother had 'the talk', that every teenager that aged dreaded, and explained what it meant to be Veela. To begin with she had told her that there was no half-Veela or Quarter-Veela, a common misconception in the wizarding world. You either are a Veela or not. She had also explained that Veela do not age like normal people do. Their bodies stay like that of a young child until their own body decides they are ready to mature and become a woman. Beside this she had also explained how sexual intercourse worked and how birth works. Fleur already knew this of course, every teenager probably knows this at that age, but her mother explained it anyway. Even adding to it that There are no male Veela, that it is very difficult for Veela to find a suitable partner, that they can transform into a bird like creature when emotional, control fire and that they cannot have sons.

Fleur already had experience with the second point her mother made, it is not only hard to find a partner as Veela, even making friends seems impossible. The boys barely notice her due to her size and childish appearance and the girls laugh at her for the same reason. She had voiced this concern to her mother back then and she had warned that it would only be worse once she matured. She had warned her that once she matured that the boys would no longer ignore her and would be captivated, even infatuated, by her, for no simple reason than her being a Veela. The Girls on the other hand would turn to jealousy and probably name calling. Her mother had said that it is possible to control her allure once she matured, and that is why she was spending her last week of summer reading about it, hoping that she could at least control it a little at the start of the school year.

She had no false hope for making friends though, she had been lonely her entire life and doubted that anything would change soon. She had her parents and her little sister, and that was enough for her. With a little sigh she continued to read the book her mother had given her.

XXX

In a place worse than Azkaban, guarded by demons from the worst nightmares. The Ministry of Magic had never uttered a word about this place, and never will. The Ministry of Magic uses this as a prison for those they deem unworthy of a trail, for those that are too big of a threat to even put in Azkaban. This place has stood and served its purpose for centuries and many more to come.

The building itself was old, nature was even starting to reclaim some of its territory, grass and small trees were growing inside, the smell of rotting corpse lingered in the air. Most of the prisoners here were small, frail human like beings with sickly green looking skin all over, only with a pair of cloth covering their most private areas. Most of these had been there for years, perhaps decades and were deranged. Some of these things would sit in a corner, silently muttering to themselves, or endlessly banging their head on the wall.

In one of these cells sat a young man with his back on the wall, right leg upwards so he could rest his arm on it. He looked nothing like the other prisoners, he didn't have the sickly green skin and wore charred wizarding robes. He looked down, staring at his dairy. There was a small crack in the ceiling of the cell, allowing the sun to cast its rays inside for a brief amount of time. The man looked up when his few streaks of light were blocked by something, or rather someone.

He couldn't get a good look at the person staring at him from above but he could see some armor. The person didn't say anything to him, he only threw some sort of key in his cell. _And here I thought this place was done screwing with my head. The demons have lost their touch if this is the best mental torture they could come up with._ He thought to himself. _Perhaps they're sending us on leave. _He huffed in mild annoyance. _There is no way that's the key to my cell door but oh well, couldn't hurt to try. Don't have anything to do otherwise._ He grabbed his dairy and the keys and stood up after putting it away safely.

To say he was surprised when he heard a click when he turned the key was putting it mildly. _Those freaks actually did it, they must be planning something. _He took the key out and put it away too, just in case, readied himself and starting walking through the halls.

He passed a lot of his fellow prisoners but didn't pay any attention to them. He didn't exactly know how long he had been in that godforsaken place but he had grew accustomed to their moans or silent whispering over the time. After ten minutes of walking through small corridors he finally found the exit to another building with a giant door. He pushed them open and looked around. Vases were scattered around the room with a few other prisoners walking aimlessly around. There was another pair of big green doors right in front of him, and an open portcullis on the left wall. He started walking forwards until a loud shriek could be heard around him. He immediately took a step back and looked up.

On the roof stood a humongous demon with a big club in its hands. It sprung towards him and nearly crushed him under its massive frame. _Yeah, I am not fighting this thing without weapons_. So he ran to the open portcullis in search for his weapons, or at least a weapon. The portcullis slammed shut behind him and he found himself in the sewers, or at least he thought. He had been stuck in that cell for, probably years, and had no idea how where all of these corridors lead too. He only saw one way ahead so he marched on.

After a small walk and climbing a ladder he found himself on a second floor, and he could see the demon looking at him through the rails. It had no way to touch him and he was sure its little wings couldn't lift it high enough to fly over them. He walked on and saw another set of stairs. When he ascended the stair he could see something heavy move, at first he paid it no mind, thinking it was probably the demon in the main hall walking around. It was not the demon however because a couple of steps later he could see a massive boulder on top of the stairs, slowly rolling towards him. Within seconds it came tumbling down and he had just enough time to jump sideways on another set of stairs that lead back to the first floor. He dusted himself off but looked back when he heard the boulder crashing into the wall revealing another room. _Couldn't hurt to look_. He decided and make his way into the room.

In this room he saw an armored figure, laying against the wall, holding his right side. He concluded that they were probably hurt and quickly made his way over to them. He didn't have his normal healing supplies with him but hopefully he could do something. The armored figure looked up as he approached.

"Hello there, Undead." He said between breaths, holding his side more tightly. "It seems that you have found me in quite a pickle." He joked lightly. "My name is Oscar." He introduced himself, looking up to the young man standing before him.

"So it seems, Oscar, I am Yuri, is there anything I can do to help?" Yuri asked while crouching next to him.

"Nice meeting you Yuri." He huffed slightly, in amusement or annoyance, Yuri couldn't really tell. "Could you help me taking of my helmet?"

"Of course." Yuri took of the helmet to reveal, if he had to guess, a middle aged man with short black hair, sweat beats all over his forehead. The helmet looked oddly familiar so he asked the first question that sprung to his mind. "Are you the one that threw that key into my cell?"

"Yes, I did. But it seemed that I angered the demons guarding this place and according to the noise outside, I reckon you did the same?" Oscar asked, still avoiding Yuri's offering for help.

"Yeah ran into a humongous Demon guarding a big green door, don't know where it leads to though. It has ben years since I have been out of that cell."

"That green door is the exit out of here, kill that demon and you'll be a free man." He smiled weakly before hissing in pain again.

"Please, Oscar, you got me out of that cell, let me help you." Yuri pleaded, he was not going to abandon a man who had saved him from the horrors of this place.

"Thanks for offering, Yuri, but it is too late for me."

"Why did you free me in the first place?" Yuri's eyes narrowed at the man, people didn't do something out of the kindness of their heart, especially for Undead like him.

"Because I am Undead too, Yuri, even though I've never been locked up in this place, I know it is a horrible experience." He answered honestly. Yuri was taken aback, It had been ages since he had seen another one of his kind. He still wondered why Oscar had saved him, Undead weren't usually friendly with each other either.

"I saved you because you are the future of our kind, Yuri. You are the Chosen Undead. You are destined to lead our kind into a golden age!" He exclaimed but frowned at Yuri's groan of annoyance in response.

"You may groan but you cannot escape the truth. You cannot escape your destiny." Oscar said. He grabbed Yuri's arm to gain his full attention again. "You are our race's last hope." He said sadly. Yuri pried himself away and stood back up.

"How long have I been rotting away here?" He said, trying to not sound annoyed or angry at the man who had saved him.

"From what I can tell for over fifteen years, perhaps close to sixteen years." Oscar whispered, he had heard to stories about this place and what it did to their kind. It was designed to break them and to leave nothing behind except for an empty, emotionless husk. When trying to save the young man before him he had seen the result of this place, those things that wandered free here were once Undead too like himself and Yuri. He had lost a lot of blood already, his end was nearing, he could feel it.

"I've left your possession in the corner over there." He pointed to the left corner. He smiled a little when he saw Yuri's own smile at the sight of his weapons and his other possession. "My time is getting shorter, Yuri, ascend the stairs and open the door with this key." He said while handing him the keys. "If you go left you can drop down on the demon, killing it in one swift blow, or at least lethally injure it." He finished while making himself as comfortable as possible, ready to finally embrace death.

"I can't leave you here, Oscar. I am sure I can heal you with a bit of Estus. I should have some left in my bag." He started moving but Oscar stopped him.

"No" He started forcefully and Yuri raised an eyebrow. He was about to retort but Oscar silenced him. "You should not waste your remaining Estus on me, Yuri. I am happy with this, I can finally embrace death. By the gods, I deserved it after bearing this curse for so many years." He said with a small smile. He looked back up at the bewildered young man. "You still have your life before you, Yuri, do not let this curse beat you down. You are perhaps Undead but you are still a man. You have not yet lost your humanity, remember this." Yuri listened attentively. "People may shun us, hate us, see us as nothing but walking corpses but we are more than that." He continued, his voice slightly dropping. Oscar time was running out but he was determined to encourage this young Undead.

Their kind was often hated by not only humans but by all living things. Giants, Goblins, Elves, Centaurs, Humans had many differences but their hate for the Undead was not one of them. In the eyes of the living, the Undead were nothing more than walking corpses. Which was technically true but only a few people actually tried to understand their situation. Oscar hadn't been treated any differently, he could count his friends on one hand. Due to this treatment he knew that Undead often travelled alone, making them lonely. He would try to convey to Yuri that he shouldn't choose this path. He saw confusion in Yuri's eyes, probably not knowing why he was telling all this.

"You do not have to carry this burden alone, find friends who accept you for who you are, perhaps even loved ones. It will make your task not easier, but so much more worth it." He finally finishes, hoping that Yuri would heed his advise in the future to come.

"The people I encountered before the Ministry put me here weren't friendly at all. It is the fate of every Undead, Oscar, I had enough time here to accept that." Yuri answered. And Oscar could hear the sadness under his bitter tone. From personal experience he knew that everyone needed at least someone to fight for.

"I know, Yuri, I know all to well." He started weakly, he started to feel dizzy, probably from blood loss. "But at least try. I know there are not a lot of people but there are some out there who see us at least as equals." He saw Yuri deep in thought, taking his words in. "I would suggest that you go to the British Isles, Scotland to be precise. I believe your quest could end there, young Undead." He suggested and Yuri gave him a nod, his previous words probably already forgotten. "Now, you should really go."

"Thank you, Oscar, For everything. I'll try to remember your words." Yuri said in honesty, looking down on his wounded fellow Undead. After giving Oscar another nod, he went to grab his stuff Oscar had put in the corner and disappeared through the hole the boulder had made.

"That's all I ask, Chosen Undead, Be safe on your travels, do not turn Hollow and may the Flame guide you." He heard Oscar calling out to him as a final goodbye. Yuri never really bothered with goodbyes, he never had a reason too. He hadn't travelled with a lot of people, and he didn't care about them enough to give them a sincere goodbye. _Except Quelana. _The thoughts of his former mentor entered his mind. She taught him everything he knew and helped him during his beginning years of being Undead. She was probably the closest he was of having a friend. he hoped that she was still out there, somewhere, so he could at least see her again. He knew the chances were slim, 16 years is a long time, but an Undead could dream, right? _No they can't _he thought bitterly, faintly shaking his head, forcing all memories from his former mentor away so he could focus on the task at hand: getting out of this place. Apparently, while lost in thought, he had ascended the stair slower than he thought and scowled at himself. He knew better than to get distracted, he recollected his thoughts and focused ahead, seeing the portcullis Oscar had talked about. He walked towards it and opened and was, against his better judgement, again lost in thought.

He really meant his words to Oscar, he was grateful that the man had saved him. He couldn't shake the sadness that he felt for the whole ordeal. He respected the man's wish but with his death it means that there is one less Undead. Yuri had no idea how many Undead were left, if there even were any. Qualana had once told him that he was one of the last bearers of the Darksign, this didn't mean however that there weren't any older Undead running around. _It also seemed that a lot of Undead became Hollow in this place_ He recollected the images of the frail and sickly forms of his fellow prisoners. They were once, like him, Undead, but succumbed to the curse and became Hollow.

Once he walked through the portcullis he saw a small Balcony on his left side. He decided to look over it to the ground below and was surprised to see the humongous demon stare back at him, grunting quietly, mace at the ready. He checked his weapons. The familiar feeling of his pyromancy flame in his left hand and his sword in his right hand made him smile lightly. And With a nod to reassure himself he followed Oscar words and jumped of the Balcony with a yell, plunging towards the head of the Demon.

It turned out that Oscar was right, He stabbed the demon right through its head, making it stumble backward. Yuri quickly pulled out his sword out, and jumped down to avoid the fountain of demon blood that sprayed out of the wound. It appeared the demon, in his last effort, tried to squash him underneath itself, for it was falling forwards. Yuri quickly made a spurt to the green door and breathed a sigh of relief when he heard a big thud behind him. And with as much strength as he could muster, he pushed the giant green doors open.

He almost moaned in pleasure when the fresh air greeted him. After 16 years of sitting in a small cell with nothing to do, the sense of freedom hit hard, a small smile forming on his face. And for the first in a long time, the smile was genuine, He dared himself to hope that, perhaps, everything would be all right. The only thing he had left to do was to find a way to Scotland.

**Disclaimer: I also do not own Dark Souls or any of it's content. I only own the plot and my Original Character.**

**A/N: Welcome everyone to my newest project. This will be my first fanfiction I've ever written. I don't know how frequent I'll update this but I hope at least once a week. This will be a heavy AU. I decided to combine Harry Potter and Dark Souls together, hopefully making my own interesting story. This will be a Harry/Fleur story because I think they are adorable and are in my opinion one of the better ships of the community. They are not a lot of Harry/Fleur fics so I decided to give it a try! I have also planned a pairing with my OC but I'll keep that to myself for now. I also have to say that I love listening to music, so you'll probably find some song lyrics at the end and/or end of a chapter to set the tone. I want to say that I do not own any of these songs in any way, I'll always put the band and the name of the song under it! The last thing I want to mention is that English is not my native language so if you see some errors, please let me know! If you want, leave a review with your thoughts and/or constructive criticism. Thank you, have a good day!**


	2. Chapter 2

Harry's wishes for a quit year were looking more and more like dreams. During his last week at the Dursley's, the twins had broken him out with a flying car. He was offered to stay at the burrow for the remaining few days, and he was also invited to accompany them to the Quidditch World Cup. He had happily agreed and had watched to match with them. It was here that he first saw Viktor Krum, the famous Bulgarian Seeker. However it was at this World Cup that he once again crossed paths with dead. A couple of Death Eaters had attacked the camping and had conjured the dark mark in the air. Luckily, there were no wounded and he accompanied Ron and Hermoine back to Hogwarts.

He was now sitting in the train, with Ron beside him and Hermoine on the opposite end. He wasn't really paying attention to what they were saying and by the sound of it they were once again in a heated discussion. He was staring out of the window, thinking how Sirius was doing. He figured that it was hard for him to live like a wanted criminal and wondered when he would see his godfather again.

"Harry, we're here." Hermoine said, snapping him out of his train of thoughts. When he turned to look at her.

"Sorry, I was lost in thought." He apologized with a weak smile, she smiled back and left the carriage, he followed her. During the ride to the castle he was once again silent, this time more focusing on all his courses and praying to whatever deity there was that this would be a calm year.

After settling in the dormitories and witnessing the sorting of the first years, they had dinner in the great hall. This time he asked how Hermoine's and Ron's summer had been and was happy to hear them ramble about all the things they had done. Apparently, Hermoine went on holiday to Spain, and Ron talked about the plans his twin brothers had about opening a shop on their own. Ron was probably going to ask him what he did during the summer but Dumbledore ushered everyone to be silent.

"First of all, I want to welcome the first years and wish every single one of you good luck in this new school year." He started in a gentle tone. "The teacher for Defense Against the Dark Arts will be Professor Moody." He announced the new teacher who took one step forwards. He had a wooden leg and an artificial eye. He occasionally sipped from a metal flask. _He's probably not drinking water. _Harry mused, thinking that the new professor was kind of weird. "I would also like to announce that the Triwizard Championship will be held again, at our school. The students from Durmstrang and Beauxbaton will arrive here next week. The tournament itself will start in October, the winner will receive thousand galleons worth of price money. More information will follow soon at the start of the Championship, thank you for your attention." He finished, murmurs erupted throughout the hall.

"Are you going to compete, Harry?" Ron asked beside him.

"No, I am not, Ron, I want a quit year for once." He answered and saw the questioning look on Ron"s face.

"Oh, well, I am going to compete, thousand galleons is a lot of money." He said, probably already thinking what he could do with all that money.

"The Tournament is dangerous, Ron. People have died while participating in it." Hermoine scolded him. "Why do you think it was cancelled for so long?" She asked him rhetorically. He just shrugged in response and both he and Hermoine shook their heads at their friends antics.

_This will be an interesting year._ Harry thought. _I hope I can stay and watch from the sidelines for once. _He laughed when he saw Hermoine hit Ron on the head, probably because he said something stupid again.

XXX

Her mother had not been lying when she said the reactions from her fellow students would be worse once she had matured. She still couldn't control her allure so every male that saw her seemed to lose all brain functions and would just stare at her like a piece of meat. The women were even worse, calling her all sorts of names, most likely out of jealousy. She was already tired of school and it had only just started. She hoped that Gabrielle's day had been better. Gabrielle attended the same school but was in her fifth year. _even though she is almost 15, she has to go through the same hell as me. _She sighed while sitting on her bed. If she could she would spare her little sister all the pain and the loneliness she had to endure when she was that age. They had at least each other.

On a more positive note, Madame Maxime had announced that the Triwizard Championship would be held at Hogwarts at the end of October and that she would only take the best of the best. She had also said that over the next month, several tests would be held to determine who would go. This motivated her because if she could participate in this Tournament she could finally show everyone that she was a smart Witch and not just the creature many of her fellow students saw her as. With new found determination she stood back to collect her books to begin to study for the tests until someone knocked on her door. Her mother had asked Madame Maxime for a private bedroom instead of sharing it with other girls, given her circumstances and the way said girls treated her. Madame Maxime had been very understanding and promised that at the start of next year, Gabrielle would get a private room too. She opened the door, not really knowing who to expect. A smile appeared on her face when she opened the door and saw her little sister standing there. Her Smile was almost gone instantly though as she saw that she had been crying.

She quickly hugged her little sister and brought her inside, making her sit on the bed and kneeling down in front of her, rubbing her hands along her arms in a comforting manner. "What's wrong?" she asked in a soft voice. Her sister was the most important person in her life and she would do anything to protect her and make her happy. Seeing her like this broke her heart.

"They were laughing at me again." Gabrielle answered in a low and fragile voice, burying her head in her heads to hide her tears from her sister. She didn't want her big sister to see her like this but she had nowhere else to go, and she could use someone to talk too. Someone who would understand. She dared to look up and meet her sister's eyes and saw nothing but love and compassion in them. _She knows how it feels, she had to went through the same things and she had no one to rely on. _She reminded herself and after a few seconds launched herself at her sister, embracing her in a hug once more.

Fleur had to stop herself to go the fifth year's dormitories and rip those girls a new one. How dare they hurt her sister like that, she didn't deserve this. She didn't know anything to say that would make it better. She couldn't say that it would be okay once she grew older because to opposite was true, she wouldn't lie to her sister like that so she hugged her and poured all her love into it. Letting her little sister know that she had someone she could count on, no matter what happened.

Gabrielle pried herself lose and sat back down on Fleur's bed. "How did you deal with it all?" She asked, she wanted to hear her sister talk about it. Fleur sat beside her, one arm around her shoulder, hugging her sideways.

"I know it isn't always easy but I tried to ignore them." She answered, recalling all the times she had cried herself to sleep.

"I am sorry you had to deal with that on your own, Fleur, I wish I could've done something." She said, snuggling in her sisters side, hoping that she could support her older sister too by showing that she was there for her.

"You have nothing to apologize for, Gabrielle. Maman helped me, I am afraid it is part of being Veela." She said truthfully, she didn't want her sister to feel sorry.

"Maman said that it doesn't get better once I mature." She inquired

"She gave you 'the talk'?" Fleur asked, looking at her sister with a small smile. Gabrielle's groan was enough of an answer, making her lightly chuckle.

"yeah, at the beginning of Summer." She scoffed, a light smile appearing on her face too. "It was somewhat useful though, I didn't know we could transform after we matured."

"yeah, didn't know that one either, never saw Maman do it." She truly had never seen her mother angry enough to transform into her bird form. "But to answer your question, I am afraid it doesn't get better." She answered honestly, and the sadness that spread across her little sister's face broke her heart again. "You'll always have me, Gabrielle, never forget that." She continued, hoping she could lift her sister's spirit again. Gabrielle looked up at her again and hugged her again.

"Thank you." Gabrielle said. She really didn't know what she would do without Fleur. They stayed like that for a couple of minutes, letting the other know they were there for each other. "I guess I need to go back to the dormitories." She said as she leaned back from the hug.

"No, Madame Maxime said you could have your private bedroom next year but I am moving it to this year. You'll be staying here with me." She offered, she had enough of seeing her sister sad. The smile on Gabrielle's face caused her to smile too.

"Really? Thank you!" She exclaimed, tackling her sister in yet another hug, making them both fall back onto the back. They were both laughing like crazy.

"I think it is bedtime, I have one of those tests tomorrow." Fleur said, she was happy her sister was in a better mood, but she would really need her sleep if she were to pass those tests?

"You are trying to participate In the Triwizard Championship?" Gabrielle asked.

"Yeah, trying to prove to the world I have brains too and not just beaty." She said smugly, inciting another shared round of laughter between the two of them. "I will try to conjure a bed for you or something." She said after their laughter had died down. But her sister stopped her when she grabbed her wand.

"You can do that another time, I don't mind." She really didn't. They both didn't have any friends to they relied on each other, creating a very close sister bond. Fleur shrugged and told her that she could go first in the little bathroom to prepare for bed.

After fifteen minutes they were both ready and crawled underneath the sheets. Of course, both on their respective sides.

"Thank you Fleur, for everything. I don't know what I'd do without you." She stated, letting her big sister know she appreciated everything she had done for her.

"Anytime, Gabrielle, You'll always have me. I love you." Fleur answered.

"I love you too, Fleur, you can always count on me too, I hope you know that." She told her sister, letting her know that she wouldn't need to face her problems alone ever again.

"I know, Thank you, Gabrielle, good night." Fleur finally closed her eyes and smiled to herself. They both didn't have friends and were shunned by their fellow students, but they had each other. And to Fleur, that was the most important part.

"Good night." Came her short reply. Knowing that they had each other's back, both sisters drifted off to sleep.

XXX

Yuri was currently being hold in the claws of a giant crow and he still chuckled if he remembered how he had met the strange bird.

He had discovered that the Undead Asylum was placed high on a mountain, and that he had no way of going down. When he had approached the side a giant crow showed up and took him between its claws and flew of. Naturally, at first he had struggled, trying to break free from the giant bird but he had stopped his antics when the crow actually spoke to him. It had only spoken a few words, not even able to construct sentences but it had offered him a ride to a place called Hogwarts. He had never heard of the place but it was apparently located in Scotland and he was intended to keep his word to Oscar and check if his quest would truly end there.

Remembering that his supplies in his bag had all but run out he decided to ask the big bird another question.

"Do you where I can get some supplies that would aid and Undead?" He asked nicely.

"I know place. Abandoned village. Lot of Undead supplies." The voice brushed against his mind. "I take you there." It offered.

"Thank you, how long do you think it would take us to reach this Hogwarts? I'll try to collect the supplies as fast as I can." He asked so he could prepare himself, he wasn't exactly sure what to expect once he reached Scotland.

"Late noon, early evening." Came it short reply. He could live with that. He didn't know what the future would bring, or what he would to about the Chosen Undead prophecy that Oscar had threw around. He had been called that before, in the first 3 years after he awoke as an Undead but he didn't even knew what it had meant back then. And after more than 15 years rotting in the Asylum he didn't even feel like he had a goal anymore. He didn't know his purpose and he at least hoped that he would find just that in Hogwarts.

**A/N: This Chapter was mostly filler with some Fleur and Gabrielle bonding and of course introducing the latter to the story! I know that she is far younger in canon but I made her older to fit the story better. I don't have any brothers or sisters so I have no idea how a sibling bond looks or feel like so I hope I did good with their little bonding time, They deserve it after everything they have to endure just because they are Veela… Anyway, thank you for reading and please leave a review if you want. Thank you, have a nice day!**


	3. Chapter 3

It was 7 O'clock in the evening and Harry was lying on his bed. The day had been mostly uneventful, he had two hours of Potions and one hour of Defense against the Dark Arts. Snape hadn't targeted him this time which he was grateful for. However, he felt sorry for Neville who received all of Snape's remarks that day. Defense Against the Dark Arts had been different. Their new professor, Moody, had showed them the three Unforgivable Curses and even casted the Imperius curse on every student to see if anyone could resist it. Surprisingly, he had resisted it, he still had no idea how he did it though. He had wanted to ask his professor more about it but Moody had dismissed the class after Neville paled at the sight of the Crucio curse and offered the boy some tea to calm down.

Hermoine and Ron were studying together in the Common Room downstairs and had asked him to join them but he had politely declined. He appreciated that they wanted to help but he could study better on his own. He started to read in his transfiguration textbook, to brush up on some spells for his class tomorrow. After half an hour of studying he decided to take another walk around the castle to clear his head before the curfew was issued. He left his room and descended the stairs to the Common room, spotting Hermoine and Ron in the sofa, studying.

"I'm going to take a walk to clear my head a bit, I'll be back before curfew." He called out to them, before walking towards the backside of the exit.

"Okay." Came Hermoine's short reply, not even looking up from her books. Ron just hummed in acknowledgement.

Harry loved taking walks outside of Hogwarts, even though it was a bit cold outside, it helped him clear his head when it became all to much to handle. His mean concern was Voldemort, he hadn't showed himself for his second and third year and was worried that he might be planning something big. He needed to become stronger, but he had no idea how, he didn't really had someone he trusted enough to share his concerns with. Most people were to scared to even say Voldemort's name out loud, let alone help him to prepare to fight him. He passed the Quidditch field and figured that he should probably start to head back if he wanted to make it in time. However when he looked up he saw three people standing in the middle of the field. He frowned. _Isn't it a bit late to make Quidditch plans? _He wondered. Harry wasn't really nosy but he found it kind of odd that three people stood in the middle of the field, doing nothing.

He made his way over there and once he got closer he could see their faces. Alicia Spinnet, Angelina Johnsen and Katie Bell, his three Quidditch team members. They didn't even seem to notice him. However when he looked closer he saw what was wrong, their eyes were a bit different, and he remembered where he had seen that kind of look before. During Moody's demonstration of the Imperius Curse he noticed that the victim's eyes seemed empty. _They are under the Imperius! I need to do something! _He told himself and yelled out their names, trying to get their attention back. Katie was the first to shake her head, the emptiness and dazed look in her eyes vanishing. She frowned, looked around and spotted Harry, with Alicia and Angelina still standing next to her.

"Harry? What is happening?" She asked, unsure how she ended up in the middle of the Quidditch field.

"I don't know, Katie. I decided to take a walk to clear my head and saw you, Alicia and Angelina standing here. I think you were under the Imperius curse. I yelled your names but apparently you are the only one who managed to snap out of it." He explained.

"Something isn't right here." She started, she yelled her friends' name a couple of times again until they too seem to shake of the curse's effects. The other girls frowned too, probably wondering the same thing. Before they could voice their concern, several black streaks of smokes had them on high alert. Several black roped individuals materialized around them, wearing white masks. 6 Death Eaters had ambushed them, with no way out. The students quickly drew their wands and stood back to back, determined to hold on as long as possible.

Harry had really no idea how Death Eaters had managed to get on Hogwarts grounds. It was supposed to be the safest place in Brittain. He suddenly felt guilty, these Dead Eaters were probably the ones that held the girls under the Imperius curse. He felt like he was at fault for endangering their lives. "I am sorry, you were probably taken here because of me." He said sadly, slowing dropping his head in disappointment. He kept eying the death eaters though, trying to figure out what they were planning. Katie was the first to speak up.

"You have nothing to apologize for, Harry. We'll get out of this." She answered while giving him a small smile. He smiled back and gave her an approving nod.

"Alicia and I will focus on defense, you two focus on the attack." Angelina whispered.

"We need the boy alive, kill the girls." One of the Death Eaters said. The others soon started throwing all kind of curses at them.

Harry and Katie immediately went on the offensive, throwing mostly stunners at their attackers while Angelina and Alicia focused on protecting the four of them. None of their attacks hit, however, they were all either dodged or blocked by the Death Eaters. Harry was about to yell out another stun when he saw a giant black bird flying towards them. It seemed like it was holding something between its claws. His fellow Quidditch players saw it too.

"What in Merlin's name is that." Alicia Exclaimed. Blocking a cruse that would've hit Katie.

"No idea. Stay vigilant, it may be one of their tricks." Angelina warned, blocking a nasty hex before quickly retaliating.

""Look, it dropped something." Katie said as she saw the giant crow open its talons and fly away.

"That's not something, it's a person." Angelina exclaimed in shock.

Harry quickly looked over only to see said person land, in a crouching position, behind two Death Eaters. He held a sword in his right hand and a red flaming glove in his left hand. He wore charred robes with a silver shield strapped on his back. The Death Eaters seemed oblivious to his presence. He quickly stood and threw a fireball at one of them, incinerating them on the spot. Harry quickly averted his gaze to focus on his attackers but was still a bit shaken at the fact that the unknown person killed without a second thought.

"Is he on our side?" Katie asked hopefully while taking a quick glance. The second Death Eater had seen the death of his comrade and turned around, only to be impaled by a large blue projectile. Katie frowned at the man's aggressiveness. She saw him making his way towards them. "He's coming, stay vigilant." She warned but she was quickly silenced when one of the Death Eater's attacked hit her right in her chest.

"Katie's hit!" Yelled Angelina, quickly rushing towards her friend's side. She quickly noted that she was hit by some kind of poisoning curse and voiced this towards the others. "She's poisoned!" She quickly threw a shield at Harry's backside to protect him from an attack. The man ran past her, Alicia and Harry, positioning himself in the middle. She tore her gaze away and focused on stabilizing her friend.

The man raised his gloved left hand, making fire pillars erupt from the ground, creating a barrier between them. Harry noticed that one of the Death Eaters was caught inside one of these pillars, reducing him to nothing but ash. The man quickly turned around, handing him a purple plant.

"Give this to your friend, it will reduce the poison buildup until we're safe." He pushed the plant in his hands and turned around just in time to see the pillars come back down. Harry quickly glanced to Alicia. She nodded indicating that he should do what the man said. So harry turned around and crouched on the other side of Katie's unconscious body. Angelina raised an eyebrow.

"What's that?" She asked as the man and Alicia engaged once again with their attackers.

"That man gave it to me, he said it would reduce the poison." He answered, eying the plant carefully, he wasn't sure if he should trust that man.

"You trust him?"

"I don't know but we don't have much of a choice, Katie's situation is getting worse with the minute." He said, glancing down at her. She was burning up with a fever, the poison was spreading fast. He gently opened her mouth and fed her the plant. "Let's hope this works." He saw the man run his sword through another Death Eater. It seemed they were retreating.

The man, However was having none of it and created a flaming lasso in his left hand and seized one of them before they could flee. Alicia was already running back towards them, while the man slowly made his way over too, ushering the captured Death Eater to follow him.

"Is she okay?" Alicia asked once she arrived, her voice full of concern.

"She got hit by a poisoning curse, that man gave me something to reduce its effects and it seems to be working." Harry said just as the man arrived as well.

"I caught one, do you need to interrogate him?" He asked curtly, forcing the Death Eater on his knees.

"I have a couple of questions." Harry answered, standing up and towering over the Death Eater, hoping that he was at least a bit intimidating. "why did you attack us." He started, the man just started laughing.

"We lured you here to try and either kill or capture you for the Dark Lord. We failed but the dark Lord will soon rise again!" He exclaimed.

"So you were the ones behind the Imperius curse that held my friends?" He continued. He did a double take on his choice of words, it was true, however. He saw the three girls as friends. The only ones he got along with beside Ron and Hermoine.

"You won't get any more information from me, boy." The man said, averting his eyes downwards.

"Then you are no longer of use to us." The man who had helped them said, grabbed his sword and slit his throat. The Death Eater fell down face first into the grass, gurgling and coughing up blood. Once again Harry was shocked at the coldness of this man, Alicia and Angelina gasped behind him. Probably as shocked as him at the cruel execution.

"Who are you?" Angelina was the first one to find her voice back.

"I am Yuri, I'll try to stabilize your friend even further until you can get her to a doctor." He introduced himself while walking over to Katie and crouched down too. He raised his left hand and held it over her chest.

"Hey, what do you think your doing?" Alicia asked and was about to push him away until a white yellowish light came out of his hand. He held it there for a couple of more seconds until a small circle of the same colors formed on Katie's chest, with a satisfied nod he stood back up.

"I tried to hold the Poison of but it is spreading faster than I expected. I am not proficient enough in healing spells, she needs to see a doctor, just to be sure." He warned while standing back up. Harry and Alicia worked together the pick Katie up, Harry would do it alone but he didn't want to hurt her.

"Thank you for the help, you are welcome to follow us as I am sure the Headmaster would want to meet you." Harry said without looking back, helping Alicia carry Katie.

Angelina was still eying Yuri with suspicion before catching up to them to check on her friend. When she was sure Katie was doing okay she glanced back to see that Yuri was indeed walking a few meters behind them. She casted one last look on Katies unmoving frame and decided to have a little talk with him.

She slowed down so she could walk with him, and wondered what to ask. She had never seen anyone do the things he had done. And she had definitely never seen anyone use a sword before. _Not even the muggles use swords anymore. _She thought. She decided to introduce herself and go from there.

"I am Angelina Johnsen, nice meeting you. And thank you again for helping us." She started. "I am not sure how it would've ended if you didn't show up." She really didn't, the Death Eaters had an amazing defense and were throwing some mean hexes and curses at them.

"The pleasure is mine, Miss Johnson, I am Yuri." He said politely. "You would've made it out if you had decided to use more effective spells." He retorted as if he was disappointed in the fact that they only used stunners and non-lethal hexes. Angelina frowned at that.

"We aren't all as comfortable with killing as you, it would seem." She shot back and she saw him looking at her through that cowl of his. If she were honest she was a little angry at how he could kill so easily, even though their attackers were Death Eaters, she believed that everyone deserved a fair case and come before court.

"In such situations it is either kill or be killed, Miss Johnsen. Besides, My kind had never problems with killing before, don't know why I should start now." He answered and Angelina frowned even more.

"What do you mean with your kind?" She asked, not entirely sure what he meant. She could see the surprise on his face before he chuckled.

"You don't know." She could see the soft smile on his lips although she couldn't figure what he didn't want her to know. She waited a minute or two before talking again.

"I've never seen those spells before. You have a way with fire." She said trying to lighten the mood, smirking a little as she looked sideways this time, waiting for his response. She couldn't see all of his facial features due to the cowl he was wearing. He scoffed.

"Of course you haven't, they are pyromancies." He answered curtly.

"You are a pyromancer?" she asked. She had once read that pyromancies were very rare and that only a specific amount of people could become a pyromancer but she didn't remember what kind of people.

"I am." He said proudly. It was his time to smirk at her, clearly taking pride in the title, and she chuckled in response. As he did this she could see something in his neck, on the left side. It was a small burning circle.

"What is that in your neck?" She asked, wondering if he got hurt somehow during the fight. The smirk immediately left his face as soon as she asked the question and she felt the light mood that hung between them disappearing instantly.

"It's nothing." He answered curtly, adjusting his cowl.

His reaction prompted her to the think more about the things she read about pyromancer and eventual tattoo's. After a couple of minutes she suddenly remembered and she didn't feel so safe anymore. If Yuri was what she thought he was, they may be in even greater danger.

"You…. You are…." She started unsure if she should finish the sentence, Yuri looked at her again with a raised eyebrow.

"I am what, Miss Johnsen?" He asked bitterly. She could see the scowl on his face again and regretted already that she said anything at all.

"You are Undead." She eventually said, voice all but a whisper so Harry and Alicia wouldn't hear it, they still had a little walk to go and didn't want to alarm them.

"You figured it out." He said coldly. Angelina decided to create a little more space between them while keeping her wand close. There wasn't really much known about Undead but the things she had read were worrying to say the least. She had read that Undead were very dangerous. They were ruthless killers and should never be trusted.

"Why did you help us?" She asked in a small voice. It didn't add up that someone like him would help them, the way how he got there was a bit suspicious too. Even though she concluded that he probably wouldn't answer her first question she couldn't help herself but ask. "How did you even get here?"

"An…. Acquaintance told me to go here, so I did." He hesitated, not really sure what to call Oscar. _She won't get the full story from me anyway. _He thought bitterly, not even bothering to mention the giant crow. It was always the same. People would talk to him normally, treat him normally, until everything fell into place and discovered he was Undead. Then they would tense up search for their weapon of choice and create distance, like the young woman beside him just did. He admitted that he had brought it up on his own but He was not going to hide who he was. _Or rather what I am, like they would say._ "I saw spells flying around and saw that you were on the defensive so I decided to step in." he answered in truth. He had figured out these people were in danger and as an Undead it was first and foremost his job to protect the living. Well at least sort of. _I am not getting to tactical, they hate me for existing either way. _He mainly did it because he wanted to keep his word to Oscar and to see if the 16 years in the Asylum had affected his combat.

"Why are you here for?" She dared to ask. The question made him look sideways at her again, showing that burning circle in his neck again. She could see his left hand tensing around his sheathed blade. She had angered him, again, and decided to create even more space between them.

"That is none of your concern, Miss Johnsen. I'll talk to your headmaster and see what he has to say." He managed to keep the bitterness out of his voice. Angelina was surprised that the cold, irritated and bitter tone had disappeared. Addressing her formally and politely like he had done at the beginning of the conversation. She decided that it would be best to let the man be and walked back up the Harry and Alicia, checking how Katie was doing.

The group saw some familiar faces approaching them. Professor Dumbledore and Professor McGonagall were walking towards them, with Madam Pomfrey in tow. Harry saw a questioning look on both Professor's faces but these were quickly replaced with concern once they saw the state Katie was in.

"Harry, what happened?" Dumbledore was the first to ask, concern lacing his voice.

"To make a long story short, we got attacked by Death Eaters at the Quidditch field. Katie got hit by a poisoning hex." Harry said rapidly. "Madam Pomfrey, can you please take care of Katie?" He asked with concern evident in his voice. He still blamed himself, Katie would've never gotten hurt if she weren't friends with him.

"Of course, I'll take her the infirmary right away." She said while taking over from Harry. "Would you please help me carry her the infirmary, Miss Spinnet."

"Of course, Madam." Came her short reply as they both carried Katie to be treated. By this time, Yuri had caught up to the two remaining students and took place at Harry's right side.

"Harry, who is this?" McGonagall asked, eyeing the stranger carefully. Before Harry could answer, Yuri introduced himself.

"I am Yuri, Miss." Came his short introduction, both Dumbledore and McGonagall threw questioning glances at both Harry and Angelina.

"We should probably go to the infirmary too to check up on Miss Bell's condition. Would you tell me what happened while we walk, Harry?" Dumbledore inquired, not even bothering to acknowledge Yuri or to properly introduce himself to the man.

"I decided to take a walk before curfew, to clear my head. I had reached the Quidditch field when I decided to go back until I saw Katie, Alicia and Angelina standing there, in the middle of the field. Once I got close I noticed that they were under the Imperius curse and managed to bring Katie back by calling her name loud enough. She then managed to snap both Alicia and Angelina out of it." He started. Angelina was listening closely too. She didn't remember how she got on that field in the first place and had wondered what had transpired before the attack. She quickly risked a glance at Yuri to see what he was doing. He walked beside Harry, listening closely to the retelling of the story before he intervened. She quickly did the same as he continued. "before we had time recover we were attacked by six Death Eaters." McGonagall gasped when he mentioned that, Dumbledore motioned him to continue. "We decided to try and work together, Katie and I would focus on the offensive while Alicia and Angelina focused on the defensive. The Death Eaters, were relentless however, and forced all of us on the defensive." Soon after Yuri landed behind them and started to take them out, he is probably the reason we got out of there alive." Dumbledore raised an eyebrow at his choice of words.

"What happened to the Death Eaters?" He dared to ask. However, Yuri answered before Harry could.

"Don't worry, Sir." He started politely. He knew that these people were opposed to killing so he had decided to take over that part of the story, for now. "Your students did not take a single life, I was the one who killed four and executed another after we asked him a couple of questions." He continued and saw their surprised expression by openly admitting to murder. _Probably teachers not wanting their students to get corrupted or something. _He scoffed internally. "The last one managed to escape though." He finished. He was still mentally scolding himself. _It would appear the 16 years in the Asylum affected my casting speed and such. I'll need to work on that. _He concluded.

By the time Yuri had finished they were already walking in the hall leading the infirmary. Once Dumbledore opened the doors Harry searched for Katie and soon found her, with Alicia sitting beside her bed. Both he and Angelina quickly made their way over, leaving Dumbledore, McGonagall and Yuri. Dumbledore turned to Yuri.

"I'll talk to you later, Yuri." Yuri scoffed internally again. _So he did hear my short introduction._ "But, if you don't mind I want to check on my students first." Yuri couldn't be bothered to reply so he gave a nod. Both McGonagall and Dumbledore made their way towards Katie while Yuri decided to sit on one of the empty beds, waiting.

"How is Miss Bell's condition, Madam Pomfrey?" McGonagall asked while Dumbledore seemed to think about something.

"She is stable, I don't know what kind of magic or antidote was given to her but it worked. The poison concentration in her blood is slowly decreasing, she should be fine in a few days." The Nurse said. Angelina couldn't help but look up at Yuri who was sitting on one of the beds near the entrance. _You saved her, thank you. _She thanked him, silently. She wanted to step up to him and thank him for saving her friend but wasn't sure if that were such a great idea after the way their conversation had ended. She quickly looked away once his eyes made contact with hers. She heard Alicia and Harry sigh in relief.

"That's good to hear, Madam Pomfrey." Dumbledore started. "Now, I think it would be best if we briefly talk with our guest so you three can go back to your dormitories. You can visit Miss Bell again tomorrow, after or in between your lessons." He looked at his students as he addressed them. With one last look at their friend, both Alicia and Angelina stood up to take their leave. He saw Harry was about to speak up but decided to cut him off. "I promise I will look into how those Death Eaters could've possibly entered Hogwarts ground." He reassured him, Harry nodded in response and stood up too.

Yuri looked up as he saw the students and teachers walking towards him. _Here we go. _He thought. The man with the white beard addressed him first.

"I want to thank you for helping my students and saving Miss Bell's life." Dumbledore started, eying Yuri carefully. He knew that Yuri was Undead of course and decided to figure out what he was doing in Hogwarts. "If I may ask, what are you doing here exactly?" Yuri stood up too now.

"I promised an acquaintance of mine I would go to Scotland and ended up here." He answered, his voice betraying nothing. Dumbledore found it difficult to read the man. "The Young man said you would want to talk to me so I followed them." He said while pointing to Harry. Dumbledore turned to Harry with a raised eyebrow, the boy just shrugged in response. "If that is everything you had to say, I'll take my leave then." He said as he turned around to walk away.

"Yuri, you don't need to leave if you don't have to. I would gladly give you one of the guest rooms if you want to stay." Dumbledore said, shocking not only McGonagall but Angelina too. _Does he even know what that man is?_ _He is dangerous, Albus, what are you planning.. _Minerva McGonagall asked herself. She of course knew too that Yuri was Undead, and a very dangerous one if his retelling of the fight was anything to go by.

Yuri knew there was more to that question than the man let on but he decided it couldn't hurt to ask. "I suppose you aren't willing to let me stay here without anything in return." He said and saw the man before him nod. _Of course.._ "What do you want?" He asked curtly, seeing how the other teacher was eying his every move.

"These are difficult times for our school, Yuri. And we are planning a major event within less than 2 months and could use some extra protection." Dumbledore started, Making McGonagall release a small sigh of relief as she saw what the Headmaster was planning. "We will offer you our finest guest room and will provide you with food and beverages during your stay. In return I ask you to keep our school and it's students safe at all cost." Dumbledore looked closely at Yuri's response to the last part of the offer. They didn't expect him to chuckle.

"I see what you are referring at, Sir Dumbledore was it?" He said, not remembering the man's name. The nod he received indicated that he had guessed his name correctly. _It's as good as any offer. _"I accept, Sir Dumbledore." He decided. It would at least give him a purpose again. Dumbledore looked relieved but it seemed that he was waiting for something. Yuri threw him a questioning glance. "Oh, I see, you want me to pledge, don't you?" He asked when he finally figured out what he wanted. The three students had no clue what was happening which Yuri found highly amusing. Dumbledore's nod said enough.

"If you wouldn't mind, Yuri." Dumbledore answered. Yuri scoffed.

"It seems that you don't trust me either." He responded but cut the Headmaster off before he could justify himself. "Don't worry, I understand, you are not the only one who doesn't trust me or my Kind, Headmaster." He said, aimed towards no one in particular but he saw the shame on Angelina's face.

"It's not…" Dumbledore started but Yuri cut him off again.

"You don't have to justify anything, I'll do it." Yuri said before lowering himself on one knee before Dumbledore. He bowed his head in subjugation and started the pledge. "I hereby swear on my Dark Soul that I will protect the school and, most importantly, it's students until I die or succumb to the Curse."

Harry had no idea what just happened but he frowned at whatever it was Yuri just did. _Did Dumbledore just subjugate the man? _He asked to himself, he glanced around to see if Alicia or Angelina had any idea what was happing. He deducted on the surprised faces that they had no clue either.

"Thank you, Yuri." Dumbledore said with a smile as Yuri stood back up. "Professor McGonagall will show you to your room." He finished and then turned towards the students who still had no clue what had just transpired. "Now, it really is time for you to go back to your dormitories, good night." And with that he left. McGonagall motioned Yuri to follow her.

"What was that all about?" Alicia asked. Harry just shrugged, he had no idea what to make of the whole situation.

"I don't know, it seemed like Yuri subjugated himself to the school." He started unsure. "Why would he do that?" Angelina knew of course that Yuri was Undead but the whole thing didn't make much sense to her either. However, she was not going to tell her friends Yuri's true identity. It was up to Yuri himself to tell that.

"We really should get going though, I think its already way past curfew." Angelina said. They bid each other a good night and made their way to their dormitories.

Ten minutes later Harry finally arrived in the Common Room with no sight of Hermoine or Ron. _They are probably already asleep._ He concluded and made his way up to the room he shared with Ron. And indeed, Ron's snores were a tell tale sign that he was asleep. Harry quickly stripped himself of clothes, except his boxers, of course, and crawled under the sheets, making himself comfortable. He was happy that Katie would make a full recovery and that the others were fine. He still didn't know much about Yuri or about the whole pledging thing. _Perhaps I could ask Yuri tomorrow, he seemed like a nice enough guy. Or I could just go and ask Dumbledore. _He thought before drifting off to sleep.


	4. Chapter 4

"_I've built walls  
A fortress deep and mighty  
That none my penetrate  
I have no need of friendship, friendship causes pain"_

_I am a Rock, Simon & Garfunkel_

Harry woke up after a dreamless sleep the next day. He got out of bed and got ready for the upcoming day, making sure he had all his textbooks. He only had Transfiguration and Charms today and was free for the entire afternoon. The whole ordeal with Yuri that had transpired yesterday was still on his mind. He really wanted to know what was going on but didn't really know who to ask. He figured that Dumbledore probably wouldn't tell him the whole story because both he and McGonagall seemed on edge around Yuri. _They should be grateful, he saved our lives. _He thought. After he got dressed and checked if he had everything for the day he opened his curtains that surrounded his bed. He heard Ron snoring and decided to wake him up.

"hey Ron, it's time to wake up. We have Transfiguration and Charms today and we still need to go eat breakfast." He yelled, hoping that it would be loud enough to wake him up. Ron groaned in response, probably not too happy to being woken.

"I'll be there in a sec." came his muffled reply. Harry laughed at Ron's antics and made his way downstairs where Hermoine was already seated in one of the sofa's in the Common Room. She looked up when she heard him come down the stair.

"Good morning, Harry." She greeted him with a smile. He smiled back.

"Good morning to you too, Hermoine." He greeted her back as he made his way over to her. "What are you reading?" He asked as he saw a book in her lap.

"Oh just preparing myself a bit for the upcoming Transfiguration class, making sure I haven't forgot anything from last year." She answered. Harry chuckled lightly making Hermoine glare at him. "What's so funny?" She asked.

"The day you will forget something will be the day the world ends, Hermoine." He teased her with a smile. Her glare went away as soon as she saw that he was teasing her. She leaned forward so she could slap his arm playfully.

"Very funny, Harry." She said as soon as she leaned back again with mock annoyance.

"I'll be honest, I did the same yesterday evening. Before I went on my little walk." He said which surprised Hermoine. The surprised look was soon replaced with pride however.

"How was your little walk by the way? And where is Ron?" She asked, wondering why their friend was taking so long.

"I tried to wake Ron but I am not sure if I succeeded." Harry said, rubbing the back of his head. "And the walk was eventful, I'll tell you once Ron comes down so he can hear it too." He sighed which made Hermoine look at him with a questioning look. Before she could ask him however, Ron came down the stairs.

"Good morning Ron." Harry greeted cheerfully. It just made Ron groan. Both Hermoine and Harry knew by now that Ron hated mornings.

"Good morning, both of you." He grumbled and sat down besides Hermoine.

"So are you going to tell us what happened yesterday evening?" Hermoine asked impatiently. This peaked Ron's interest too who seemed a little bit more awake now.

So Harry started to retell the whole story. When he saw Katie, Alicia and Angelina, the attack and Yuri's entrance and the unknown spells he had used. Both his friends paled when he got to the part where Yuri murdered the Death Eaters but he paid it no mind and continued. He told them that Katie got hit by a poisoning curse which caused both of his friends to be worried. He quickly reassured them that Yuri had given him something to battle the poison. He continued by telling them how Yuri captured one of the Death Eaters and which questions he had asked them. They now gasped as soon as he told them that Yuri had executed the Death Eater.

"This Yuri seems dangerous, Harry." Hermoine started hesitantly, waiting his response. He just looked at her with a frown.

"Perhaps, but if it wasn't for him, we would've been dead. Those Death Eaters had an nearly impenetrable defense and were throwing some dangerous curses and hexes around." He said a bit annoyed. He had no idea why everyone was so cautious around Yuri. He wasn't a fan of killing either, but Death Eaters were dangerous and if by killing on of them meant protecting countless others, his choice would be made really fast. Sensing Harry annoyance, Ron asked him to continue and so he did.

He told them that, after the execution, Yuri healed Katie. He described what happened when Yuri had crouched next to Katie and had placed his hand on her chest. He described what happened next with the white yellowish circle. Hermoine frowned.

"I remember vaguely reading about some of those fire spells he probably used but I'll have to go searching in the library again if we want to know more. I have never heard about that spell however. You said it came out of his left gloved hand?" She asked, wondering why she had never heard about these type of spells. Harry nodded.

"Yeah, He wore a red glove with a flame in it. I had never seen anything like that before either." Harry answered, Ron just listened to his two friends discussing this Yuri character. He was still trying to shake the sleep drunken state he was in. harry continued the story, telling them how he and Alicia carried Katie while Angelina went back to talk to Yuri.

"And you didn't hear anything they said?" Ron finally decided to ask something. Harry shook his head.

"No, I was to focused on getting Katie to the infirmary that I didn't pay any mind to their conversation. They were a few meters behind us and didn't speak that loudly." He then told them about professor Dumbledore, professor McGonagall and Madam Pomfrey meeting them.

"It seemed that they both weren't very comfortable around, Yuri. I still have no idea why though." He added. Hermoine just gave him a shrug, indicating that she didn't know either what was going on, and motioned him to go on with the story. He finished with retelling everything that had happened in the infirmary. Hermoine seemed even more confused than before.

"Dumbledore made him do that?" She asked in disbelief, her frown increased when Harry just nodded in response. "I don't understand, it sounded like Yuri subjugated himself to the school. Even in return for shelter and food that is still a pretty big deal." She stated.

"I have no idea either, but I think we should get down to get breakfast." Ron offered before he stood up, already heading in the direction of the door. Harry and Hermoine rolled their eyes at their friend thinking about food again. Hermoine quickly took a few books with her so she could start searching to the unknown spells Yuri had used. Resulting in Harry giving her an eye roll.

They quickly made their way towards the Great Hall and took place at the Gryffindor table. Ron sat next to him while Hermoine sat opposite of them, like they always dead. They turned their heads as soon as Dumbledore started speaking.

"Good morning, students." He started, his wand pointed at his throat. Harry saw Yuri standing not too far behind Dumbledore. He seemed dressed in the same charred robes as yesterday, his cowl firmly in place obscuring most of his facial features. His sheathed sword hanged on his left hip with his left hand resting on the hilt, harry could faintly see the small flickers of flames escaping from his grip, indicating that he was still wearing that glove.

"That's him. The man standing not far behind Dumbledore is Yuri." He whispered to Hermoine and Ron. Hermoine watched him with intent.

"Bloody hell he seems intimidating." Ron whispered loud enough for only the three of them to hear.

"You should have seen him fighting yesterday, you do not want to end up on his bad side." Harry answered. Hermoine was now quietly searching in her books, probably searching for something linked to the still mysterious young man. If harry had to guess he would probably be around 20. They were not the only one who had seen Yuri as almost the entire Hall was murmuring amongst each other. Probably wondering the same thing as them.

"Silence!" Dumbledore bellowed. Everyone immediately fell silent, allowing him to continue. "I would like to introduce you to Yuri." He said while motioning him to come forward. He did, until he stood next to Dumbledore, not disturbed in the slightest that all eyes were now concentrated on him. "He will act as a guard for the upcoming Triwizard Tournament. I expect all of you to treat him with respect like you would any other guest." With that both Dumbledore and Yuri made their way back to the table where the teachers were seated to eat breakfast.

During breakfast, Hermoine didn't say a word. She kept searching her books while taking a bite out of her toast from time to time. He and Ron were theorizing who Yuri may be. After they had breakfast, they made their way towards their classes.

Both Transfiguration and Charms passed quickly. Harry didn't really mind both classes. He was pretty good in them and found them interesting enough. After Charms, Hermoine bid them farewell to go to Arithmancy. Ron bid him farewell to, saying that the twins wanted to show him something. Harry didn't really mind, he liked to be alone sometimes. That's why he liked going on walks in the evening. With both is friends gone he decided to go the infirmary to check up on Katie.

Once he arrived in the infirmary he saw both Alicia and Angelina sitting besides Katie's bed. It appeared that she still wasn't awake.

"How is she doing?" he asked as he made his way over. Both Alicia and Angelina turned their heads, smiling when they saw him.

"Madam Pomfrey said she is doing fine. Apparently the poison had weakened her significantly, hence why she is still asleep." Angelina explained. "she said that Katie would awake within a few days." She gave him a small smile which he returned.

"That's good news." He said while taking a seat beside Angelina. "It seems that Yuri really did cure her." He continued, wondering what the two girls thought about their new guest. Harry saw that Angelina paled a bit but gave it no further though. Alicia was the first to answer.

"Yeah, I am grateful. I first thought he was about to do something inappropriate when he crouched beside her and laid his hands on her chest." She admitted.

"I still don't know what to make of him. And I still have no clue what happened yesterday." He countered, hoping that they would perhaps know something.

"Me neither, but I am grateful that he helped us. I am going to thank him personally when I see him." Alicia said. Harry noticed that Angelina was still quit, looking at Katie's unmoving form, deep in thought. "However, I need to go now, I have Defense against the Dark Arts now." She continued, stood up while casting a last glance at her friend and took her leave. Leaving Harry and Angelina.

"You seem troubled." He stated, hinting that she could tell him what was troubling her if she wished. She just sighed.

"I don't know what to think of Yuri. I mean he helped us and saved Katie but he seems a bit shady. His entrance alone was questionable too." She started. Harry couldn't help but agree.

"It was, but so far, he hasn't given me a single reason not to trust him." He answered, honestly. Harry hadn't really a chance to talk to him but he seemed nice enough. He remembered that Angelina did talk to him and couldn't help but ask. "What did you two talk about, yesterday?" Angelina seemed hesitant to answer.

"We talked about his fighting style a bit. I confronted him that he was rather accustomed to killing." She started, Harry raised an eyebrow indicating that she should probably elaborate. "He told me that we wouldn't have needed his help if we had used more destructive spells." Harry could see some truth in that statement but still, it was four of them against six Death Eaters, it was hardly a fair fight.

"I also discovered something more troubling, Harry." He could here the hesitation in her voice. Perhaps even a hint of fear in there as well.

"What's that, Angelina? What did he say?" He inquired.

"I am not sure if I should tell you, Harry, but… Yuri is not who you think he is." She started carefully which confused Harry. _I barely know him in the first place. _He thought to himself and soon voiced his thought.

"I barely even talked to him, Angelina, of course I don't know who he is." He stated.

"I know, but there is more to it but I don't think it is my place to tell you. You should be careful around him, Harry." She answered with a frown. Now Harry was utterly confused. Before he could ask anything else she spoke up again. "I have to go now, my Transfiguration class will start soon and I still need to eat lunch." She said as she stood up and left Harry alone, next to Katie's unconscious body, lost in thought. After five minutes he decided to leave too, and get lunch.

He took place at the Gryffindor table and began eating lunch, still trying to figure out who Yuri was. As he was quickly looking around, he saw that Yuri was no longer in the Great Hall. Only McGonagall was there, watching the students eat, making sure nobody misbehaved. After his lunch he decided to just go ask McGonagall.

"Excuse me, professor, may I ask you something?" He asked as he walked towards her. She turned around to face him, a smile on her face.

"Of course, Mr. Potter, What is the problem." She asked.

"I wanted to thank Yuri for his help yesterday but I don't know where I can find him. Could you point me to his guest room please." He asked nicely. He really wanted to thank the man that saved not only his life but also the lives of his three friends. McGonagall's smile, however, vanished as soon as she heard his name. She had a questioning look on her face.

"I am sure that wouldn't be necessary, Mr. Potter." He frowned at that answer. _McGonagall doesn't like him either? What is going on here? _"You shouldn't seek him out, Mr. Potter, He is dangerous." There was it again. This was the second time he heard someone call Yuri dangerous. He knew that he was a skilled fighter, the fact that he killed five Death Eaters should prove that. But Yuri was nothing but polite to everyone he encountered after the fight. He really didn't know why people were warning him.

"He has done nothing to make us label him as such, Professor. Yes he has killed five Death Eaters but he saved us by doing so." He countered, keeping his voice low so others wouldn't hear him. McGonagall sighed.

"Still, we should be cautious, Mr. Potter." She tried again, harry was starting to lose his patience. He just wanted to thank the man.

"Please, Professor, I just want to thank him." He tried again and heard McGonagall sigh once more.

"Fine, Mr. Potter. You are as adamant as your father." She finally relented with a small smile. He returned to smile, not sure to take her remark as a compliment or not. "He is in the guest room closest to your dormitory, Mr. Potter." She told him. "Be careful, Mr. Potter." She added. Harry just thanked her and made his way towards the guest room closest to his dormitories.

On his way there he still wondered why everybody warned him of Yuri. He couldn't shake the feeling that Yuri, pretty much, gets the same treatment than himself. Everybody saw The-Boy-Who-Lived just like everybody saw the skilled and dangerous fighter in Yuri. _That doesn't mean he is like that outside of combat._ Harry could say that perhaps only Katie, Alicia and Angelina saw him as Harry, that he could call them friends. He still wasn't sure about Hermoine and Ron.

He soon found the guest room McGonagall mentioned. He just decided to knock and hope for the best. After three knocks the door finally opened. Revealing Yuri standing there with a neutral expression with one eyebrow raised, silently questioning him why he was there. Harry first noted that Yuri was not as tall as he thought. He also saw that the cowl wasn't as effective if you were standing face to face with him. He could clearly see that he had very short brown hair and brown eyes that held a hint of annoyance. He could also see something burning on his left neck. He figured he should probably say something before the man became more annoyed with him than he already was.

"I am sorry to disturb you sir, but I wanted to thank you for last night." He said with as much courage as possible. Yuri was really intimidating but he tried not to let it show he was intimidated by him. Yuri's eyebrow shot up again in question.

"It was no problem, Mister, I did what I had to do." He started and Harry saw the annoyance leave his features. He mentally let out a sigh of relief. "I guess I didn't really introduced myself properly to you, please come in." He offered while stepping aside, giving Harry room to enter. He gladly accepted the offer and stepped inside the room. The room was bigger than he expected. There was a desk with a chair, a living room with a fireplace and a sofa and he could see two other doors. Probably leading to the bedroom and bathroom. Yuri closed the door behind him and motioned him to take a seat in the sofa. He heard Yuri grab the chair at the desk and place it in front of the fireplace, facing him.

"I am Yuri, It is nice meeting you Mister." He introduced himself while offering his hand. Harry took it and shook his hand while introducing himself.

"I am Harry, Harry Potter. It is nice to meet you too Yuri." He said. Yuri stopped the handshake first and took place on the chair, facing him. "I want to thank you for yesterday evening. You saved me and my friends. And you saved Katie's life, I am forever in your debt." He said honestly, Yuri just shook his head with a small smile.

"It was my pleasure to help, Mr. Potter." He said formally. Harry was not surprised at the formal tone but at the fact that he hadn't addressed him as The-Boy-Who-Lived.

"Harry is just fine, sir. Mr. Potter sounds so formal." He answered with a small smile. Yuri chuckled lightly.

"Okay, Harry, then I think it is fair that you stop calling me sir." He said. "Yuri is just fine." Harry answered with a nod. "So, what do you want to talk about." Yuri wasn't sure what this young man wanted. Harry seemed friendly but that wouldn't fool him, he kept his guard up, just in case.

"I just want to know what yesterday was all about, Yuri. Perhaps, if you are willing to share, where you came from, what those spells were and maybe explain what happened yesterday in the infirmary." Harry asked, he was curious to hear this man's story. He didn't know why everyone kept telling him to be cautious, Yuri had been nice so far. Yuri chuckled again.

"That are a lot of questions, Harry." He said in amusement, making Harry slightly embarrassed, maybe he had asked to many questions.. He was about to tell him that one question was more than enough but Yuri cut him off. "It is no problem, Harry, I am willing to answer at least some of them. However, I am not sure if your teachers would be thrilled to know that you are here at the moment." He said.

"Don't worry, Professor McGonagall knows I am here. I asked her where your room was because I didn't know." He answered, not mentioning how opposed to the idea she had been.

"To begin, I come from a place far away from here. You may have seen the giant crow yesterday?" He asked tilting his head a bit, waiting his response.

"Yes, I didn't have much time to question what it was but it seemed impressive. Is it your familiar?" He asked. He noticed that he didn't give him a specific name but he was content with the answer. Yuri seemed amused with his question.

"No, It just offered me a ride here. I asked it to drop me once I saw the spells flying around." He answered, Harry shot him a grateful smile again before he continued. "The spells you saw me use are pyromancies." He answered his next question. Harry had never heard of those before.

"Pyromancies? I've never heard of them. They seemed powerful though. Especially those flaming pillars!" he exclaimed, remembering when the pillars of fire created a barrier between the Death Eaters and them, giving them time to tend to Katie's poison affliction.

"Thank you, and you wouldn't know them, they aren't taught here." He explained. "I even think that most pyromancies are considered dark magic nowadays." _That explains a lot. _Thought Harry. Now he at least knew why Dumbledore and McGonagall weren't exactly thrilled with Yuri's presence.

"So that is why so many people have told me to be cautious around you.." Harry wondered aloud, getting another chuckle from Yuri as response.

"Probably, among other reasons." He said. Harry wondered what reasons but seeing that Yuri's voice held a little bitterness he decided not to push further. "Don't worry, I am here to protect the school and the students. I mean no harm towards anyone with no ill intentions." He answered as he hung his head. Harry heard the desperation in his voice. _He probably thinks I don't believe him either. _Harry thought.

"I believe you, Yuri." He reassured the man who looked back up at him. Harry gave him a small smile to show that he meant it. He was not going to judge this man for his past actions, he did what had to be done.

"That.. means more to me than you know, Harry." Yuri answered and harry could see the earnest in his eyes. Harry gave him another smile. "To continue answering your questions, the spell I used on Miss Bell was a Miracle." Harry's questioning glance was back in place. He also briefly wondered how Yuri knew Katie's full name but figured that he had probably heard Madam Pomfrey address her with her last name. "Miracles are sort of healing spells, I am not that good with them but I know enough of them to get around." He added nonchalantly. Harry remembered Alicia's words and chuckled.

"Alicia thought you would do something inappropriate to Katie when you placed your hand on her chest." Harry said with a bit of a teasing voice. He laughed when Yuri blushed. Yuri, however, didn't catch the teasing and quickly retorted.

"I would never do such thing. The Miracle I casted is called 'Small Heal' and if you don't place your hand on the affected place it won't have any effects." He quickly gave his explanation, frowning when Harry started laughing even more.

"Relax, I was just joking around." Harry said, seeing Yuri relax made it even more funny. Yuri cleared his throat.

"The situation in the infirmary is more complicated I'm afraid." He started hesitantly as soon as Harry stopped laughing, trying to forget about the little joke he made. Harry didn't say anything during the little pause, thinking that Yuri had difficulties putting his thoughts to words. "I took a pledge to defend this school at all costs, even if it means death." He stated after the long pause, eying Harry to see his reaction. Harry had heard him yesterday in the infirmary but thought it was just a figure of speech. He didn't know it really meant that Yuri would defend this school until Death.

"Isn't that a bit extreme? Dumbledore made you do it, didn't he?" He couldn't understand why Dumbledore would subject someone to such a fate. Yuri's face grew grim. After another long pause he slowly shook his head.

"I think it is for the best if I weren't to explain what the pledge is or what it means." He said seriously. Harry was disappointed but he respected Yuri's privacy. "Perhaps I can tell you sometime in the future." He said hopefully with a smile towards Harry. Harry returned the smile with one of his own, happy that Yuri would at least think about telling him the truth.

"Given that this is a school, you probably have classes tomorrow." Yuri started. Harry wasn't sure where he was going with this. "And your friends are probably searching for you." He started again. Harry finally realized what he was suggesting. It was still clear that the last topic didn't sit quite well with Yuri. Harry didn't blame him, everyone had their secrets. Perhaps, given time, Yuri would tell the whole story.

"Right, I guess I should get going then." He said as he stood up, Yuri doing the same. "Thank you again for everything you did yesterday." He said, receiving a respectful nod from Yuri. "And thank you for trusting me enough to at least tell me something." Harry continued. He saw that Yuri had been kind of uncomfortable throughout their conversion so he concluded that he didn't have many people to share things with. Yuri's eyes widened for just a moment before he stood up to accompany Harry to the door.

"I, uh, thank you for listening." He answered unsure before opening the door. Harry was about to step back out until Yuri's voice stopped him again.

"You are always welcome here, Harry." He started with earnest in his voice. Harry was taken aback by the declaration. "If you want to know more about some of the spells I can use or just want to talk, my door is always open." He continued before giving him a reassuring smile and putting one of his hands on Harry's shoulder. "I really do mean it, not many people come by and even fewer want to talk to me." He declared, sadness slipping in his tone for just a second before it was gone again. Harry was now sure that Yuri did in fact, not had many friends at all. _He reminds me of myself in a way. _Harry thought somberly. He didn't let his sad thoughts show, however. He put his arm on Yuri's should and looked him right in the eye.

"I promise that I will try to come by at least once a day, Yuri. I enjoyed our little talk." He reassured the man, making a smile appear on his face. "I don't know why people keep telling me you're dangerous but I assure you, I don't believe any of it." He continued sincerely. Yuri gave him a thankful nod.

"Thank you, Harry, that means a lot."

"You are more than welcome, Yuri. I see you tomorrow." Harry said with another nod before leaving, he heard Yuri close the door soon after he left. Harry decided to head back to the dormitories, perhaps learn a bit more for his Defense Against the Dark Arts class tomorrow, he also had Divination tomorrow but he couldn't be bothered to study for those.

As he walked back he thought about the talk he just had with Yuri. He still had no idea why Angelina or Professor McGonagall told him to be cautious around him. Yuri had treated him far friendlier than most of the students here. Harry noticed however, the earnest in Yuri's voice when he said that he believed him. Harry already concluded that the man had very few interaction with others if his nervousness was anything to go by. _I didn't see any pictures of family or friends either. Perhaps he is even more lonely than I thought…_ Harry intended to keep his promise, he would go visit Yuri at least once a day. And if everything goes well, perhaps, Harry could make a new friend.

XXX

As soon as Harry had left, Yuri had placed the chair back at his desk and sat down with a big sigh. He never had visitors so of course he wasn't sure what to expect when he opened that door. First he thought that Harry would figure out what he was during their talk but he never did, this was beyond surprising for Yuri. He remembered Oscar's words. "Find friends who accept you for who you are." He citated under his breath. Yuri wasn't keeping his hopes up though, as soon as Harry would figure out what he was he would create distance too and never speak to him ever again. _After all, the life of an Undead is a lonely one. _He thought somberly.

"I am a rock  
I am an island  
And a rock feels no pain…  
And an island never cries…"

I am a Rock, Simon & Garfunkel

**A/N: The first real interactions between my OC and Harry. I really hope I am portraying my OC in a good way. I am trying my best not to make him a bland, generic character. I would love some feedback so please, leave your thoughts in the reviews. Thank you, and have a great day!**


	5. Chapter 5

The last week had been very eventful for Harry. He had kept his promise to Yuri and visited him at least once a day, after his classes. Harry found that, despite everyone saying not to, that he trusted the man. They talked mostly about spells Yuri knew or about his classes. Yuri had listened to him, venting about Snape agonizing him or Trelawny prophesizing his death. He had listened to Harry talking about everything he went through the past three years which angered Yuri to no end. He had asked how such things were even possible in a school that was supposed to be the safest place in the country but Harry could only answer him with a shrug. Yuri in turn had showed him how his weapons worked. The red flaming glove was apparently called a pyromancy glove, used to cast pyromancies. Yuri had explained that he had enchanted it many years ago to be able to cast miracles with it too. Harry learned that Yuri's sword was pretty much a wand to him. When Harry had asked him what he could cast with it he was reluctant but he told him anyways.

"The sword is used to practice Soul Magic, Harry. It is a very dark and dangerous form of magic which is probably one of the other reasons people tell you to be cautious around me." He had said. Harry appreciated his honesty. "I am not an expert in it but I know the basics." He had continued.

Even with this new information, Harry couldn't come to fear the man. Ron and Hermoine had asked him where he ran off too after their classes. He had told them that he was visiting Yuri and they were not too happy about it. Hermoine had warned him again about the potential danger. During the week she had been searching for a clue about who Yuri really was but had no luck so far.

If Harry were completely honest, he valued his new found friendship with Yuri more valuable than whatever it is he had with Hermoine and Ron. Granted they had helped him in the past three years but he felt like something was up, especially with Ron. Lately, Ron had been giving him jealous looks and Harry had no idea why. Hermoine on the other hand was still her usual self but Harry found her constant nagging, irritating at some points. Harry's friendship with Alicia and Angelina had only grown, He trusted the girls. The same went for Katie after she had woken up on Thursday. She was first confused, asking what had happened but after he and Angelina had explained she relaxed and thanked them for taking care of her. Like Alicia, she too asked to thank Yuri for saving her but was shut down by Angelina, confirming Harry's theories that she did know more about his new friend. After Madam Pomfrey had let Katie go, his friendship with her had strengthen too.

Yuri was still a bit closed off, despite sharing a bit of his past with Harry. He had noticed that there were sometimes big gaps in the stories Yuri had told and Harry only hoped that his friend would one day trust him enough to tell everything. Over the week, Harry had noticed that Yuri's permanent stoic expression had sometimes faltered, allowing himself to show more emotion on his face when Harry was around. Harry took this as a sign that he was starting to trust him. He concluded that the man had to have a rough past if he closed himself off like that.

Right now, Harry found himself in Yuri's room, listening him telling a story about his first days as a pyromancer.

"The very first time I tried creating a fireball, I almost burned Quelana to a crisp." He said with amusement, Harry could still see a hint of sadness in his eyes when he talked about Qualana. Yuri had told him about her, his mentor and teacher, the only one he was really close to. Harry knew that Yuri wasn't fond of talking about her, and every time he did, Harry could see the sorrow in his eyes. So he avoided bringing it up unless Yuri talked about it first. Harry was happy though, every day he learned something more about Yuri, strengthening their friendship. He hadn't told Yuri about the Dursleys yet but he figured that, given time, he too could confide in Yuri. "And I won't even talk about the first time I attempted to create a fire pillar." Yuri added, chuckling lightly. Harry chuckled too.

"Who did you burn?" He asked, grinning. He could see that Yuri was a bit embarrassed but answered him anyway.

"I didn't burn anyone." He started, feigning to be offended that he would even think that. "I didn't know how to cast it properly so I accidently casted it under me." Harry could think where this was going. "I had just enough time to dive out of the way or I would've been incinerated." He finished with a small laugh. Harry grinned.

"Didn't know you were that bad, Yuri." Harry teased his friend, resulting in him getting a mock glare in response.

"I bet you couldn't even hit me in a duel." He quipped with a smirk. Harry laughed.

"I think you're right. I've seen you fight those Death Eaters." Harry answered. He knew Yuri had meant it as a joke but he thought it was true.

"Those were amateurs, Harry. You killed a giant snake and those flying demons. I think it would be a fair fight." Yuri answered honestly. He found that Harry often downplayed his own skills. "I think we should test this soon. I could use the training."

"Are you serious?" Harry asked bewildered. He was no where near Yuri's level of skill.

"Yes I am. You shouldn't underestimate yourself Harry." Harry was touched by his words. His whole life, the Dursleys had treated him so bad that, sometimes, he thought he was nothing. They made him believe he was nothing but he could see it in Yuri's eyes that he meant every word he had just said, stunning Harry.

"I…. Thank you. That means a lot to me." He answered honestly, Yuri smiled in return.

"You're welcome, Harry, I look forward to our little duel." He gave him a respectful nod.

"I guess I should go back to the dormitories, it's getting late." Harry announced. "I'll hold you to your promise." He said with a smile.

"Of course, I wouldn't expect any less." Yuri answered with a smile of his own. They bid their farewells and Harry went back to his dormitories, grateful to have made a new friend.

XXX

Hermoine had been looking through countless of books this past week. She knew that this Yuri character was hiding something important and she was set in finding out why. Ron had decided to help her and the two of them were now sitting in the Gryffindor Common Room with a couple of books scattered around them. Hermoine had no idea why Harry visited the man even after she had warned him about the potential dangers. She had stumbled on a book about Necromancy, the branch of magic needed to create Inferi. Her eyes widened at the last chapter of the book about something called Undead. She started to read and the more she read the paler she got. Ron noticed the sudden change and spoke up.

"What's wrong Hermoine?"

"I….I think I found it." She said in a small voice. There was only a small paragraph about them, but it made her shudder.

"You did? What does it say?" He asked. Hermoine decided to read it out loud.

"_Not many people faced Undead and lived to tell the tale. They are nothing like Inferi and do not depend on a dark wizard. They are, instead, a race on their own and can live for hundreds of years. Their origin, however, is unknown. They are skilled, merciless killers and should be killed on sight or reported to the Ministry. They use three branches of magic: Pyromancies, Miracles and Soul Magic. Pyromancies are spells related to fire, they use a flaming glove as medium. Their miracles act like healing spells but can often be used offensive too. There is not much known about their use of Soul Magic but it is very dangerous, there is no known medium that they use to cast these spells."_

"Bloody hell." Ron murmured. "Do you think Dumbledore knows?" He asked, not exactly feeling safe. Those flaming spells Yuri had used had to be pyromancies.

"It is very likely but it doesn't make sense if he does. Dumbledore would never let something like that in the school." She said. She hated that there was only a small paragraph about them, she wanted to know more.

"We should warn Harry. He is in more danger than he realizes." Ron deducted. As soon as he said that, they heard a very familiar voice standing behind them.

"Warn me about what?" Harry had just walked past the Fat Lady and wondered what his friends were talking about. They turned around and frowned at their serious faces.

"Harry, where have you been?" Hermoine asked sternly, it remined Harry of McGonagall in a way.

"I visited Yuri again, like I did every day for the past week." He answered, not sure why she was interested in his activities.

"You shouldn't visit him anymore, Harry, he is dangerous. We discovered what he is." She said and before Harry could protest she started reading again. Harry didn't know why but he felt the anger rise in him. After she read that these Undead should be killed on sight he interrupted her.

"So you think Yuri is Undead? What makes you think that?" He asked annoyed. Both Hermoine and Ron heard the annoyance in his tone but didn't back down.

"Think about it mate. Don't you think he is a bit of a shady character?" Ron started.

"And those spells you described to me must be Pyromancies, there is no other logical explanation." Hermoine continued. "You told us yourself Harry. You described how ruthless he was during the fight with the Death Eaters." She finished, making Harry even more angry.

"They were Death Eaters, Hermoine, it was either kill or be killed." He bit back angerly. "Beside, what does it matter if he is Undead? He has been nothing but nice to me! Now that I think of it, He has been a better friend recently than you two were in the past week." he yelled, shocking Hermoine and Ron. It was true, however. Hermoine was always busy in the library and Ron walked off to check on the twins, leaving him alone.

"He is not even human, Harry! It's a walking corpse, just like Inferi created by dark magic. It can't feel anything, it can't form friendships. " She yelled back, tears forming in her eyes.

"You haven't even known that thing for more than a week and you already value that over us?" Ron started yelling too, clearly angry. "We have had your back since your first year, Harry. And you are willing to throw that away for a corpse?"

"If you would've tried talking to him you would now that he does have emotions, Hermoine." He glared at her. He focused his gaze on Ron next. "I appreciated everything you both have done for me in the past, Ron, but I can't shake the feeling you see me as Harry Potter and not Harry." He finally voiced his concerns that had troubled him since summer. They both seemed shocked at this but he continued. "Don't even try to deny that your jealous for some reason, Ron, I saw the looks you have throw at me these past years." Ron looked down in shame. "I still have no idea why, if you want it, you could have it all because I am tired of this." Harry finished and turned around, taking his leave.

"Where are you going?" Hermoine asked in a small voice, he barely heard it. He looked over his shoulder and answered.

"To the one that has been there for me this past week." With that said, he made his way back to Yuri's room. He wasn't angry that Yuri had withheld his origin. Harry figured he had a pretty good reason for it but he wanted to hear Yuri's side of it all, not some incomplete botched up story that Hermoine had read. He still couldn't believe that they both jumped to conclusion so quickly without even trying to talk to the man.

He quickly found his way back to the guest room and knocked. He didn't notice the door opening as he was still trying to figure out what he was about to ask. Yuri's frowned quickly turned into a smile when he saw Harry.

"Harry, decided to take me up on my duel offer?" He joked with a smile. That smile, however, disappeared quickly when he saw Harry's frown. He could already guess what this was about and stepped aside to let him in. Harry finally realized that Yuri had opened the door, stepped inside and saw that Yuri's mask was firmly in place, eyes betraying nothing. Harry took a seat in the sofa while Yuri wordlessly grabbed the chair and sat across for him like they had done for the past week when they had talked. Yuri narrowed his eyes at him.

"You know." He stated. Harry couldn't hear anything in his voice. No sadness, disappointment or anger, nothing. It actually worried him a bit. He feared that the friendship they had built in the past week was crumbling before their eyes and he definitely didn't want that.

"Hermoine and Ron told me, they had read something about Undead in a book but it didn't have much information at all." He started. He quickly continued when he saw Yuri clench his jaw. "They jumped to conclusions, saying you were dangerous, again. That I should avoid you, again. Telling me that you weren't even human at all." He explained shortly what had happened in the Common Room. This time, Yuri did react, Harry could see the realization on his face, sadness evident in his eyes. Yuri quickly looked down in defeat. "However, I wanted to hear your side of everything." Yuri looked back up at that, confused. Yuri remained silent so Harry decided to break the proverbial ice. "Are you Undead, Yuri?" He asked with nothing but curiosity. Yuri took a deep breath.

"Yes, I am Undead." He answered in a small voice that sounded so unlike him. Harry had discovered during the week that Yuri was proud of the things he had accomplished, even though he was often reluctant to share them. Harry now knew why, he was scared that he would know what he was. He was scared that Harry would abandon him. Harry was sad that he would think that, even though their friendship was new, Harry would never abandon him.

"I am not angry, Yuri, please don't think that." He started, still, Yuri didn't say a word. "I knew from the beginning that you were not telling me something due to some of the gaps in your stories." He continued and saw Yuri scolding himself, he continued however. "I meant it when I said I want to hear your side and I genuinely hope that you want to share some of it." He said, making Yuri's eyes widen. "Do not be concerned about our friendship, Yuri. Our talks this past week were fun and I had genuinely a good time. This does not change anything for me, you are and still will be my friend after this." He finished with a smile. This seemed to have quelled any doubts Yuri had as he started talking.

"The origin of the Undead race is unknown by anyone that isn't Undead. So I will begin there." He started. Harry gave him a nod. "A long time ago, The Everlasting dragons ruled the land, enslaving not only humans but Centaurs, Giants, Goblins and countless of other races too. They were immortal so no one dared to oppose them. This was known as the age of Ancients. No one really knows how long it lasted and we'll probably never know. However, one day, four beings found a very powerful flame, now known as the First Flame. Gwyn, Lord of Sunlight was determined to overthrow the Everlasting dragons. The Witch of Izalith and her daughters, creators of Pyromancies, they too wanted to be free of the dragons. Nito, First of the Dead, sought to give the souls of the deceased a place to stay. And lastly, the Furtive Pygmy, Claimer of the Dark Soul and ancestor of the humans with no magical capabilities, or muggles as you call them. This exact moment marks the birth of magic as we know it." Harry couldn't believe what he was hearing but kept his mouth shut and let Yuri continue. "Gwyn started a rebellion, with the Witches of Izalith and Nito as his generals. He recruited everyone who was willing to join the war he had ignited. It was a futile war, however, the dragons were immortal and even with the power of The First Flame, Gwyn and his army could not even scratch them. However, Gwyn was determined to overthrow their rules and sought help in their own kind. Seath, The Scaleless, a malformed Everlasting Dragon, shunned and disregarded by his brethren helped Gwyn by revealing the dragon's weakness: Lighting. This was a turning point in the war, Seath taught Gwyn and his followers how to use the First Flame's powers correctly. Gwyn summoned powerful spears of sunlight and threw them at the dragons, piercing their scales effortlessly. The Witches of Izalith summoned firestorms to blind and weaken the dragons. And Nito unleashed a miasma of death and disease. The role of the Furtive Pygmy is unknown." Yuri explained. Harry almost didn't believe it but saw how serious Yuri was about this and waited patiently for him to continue.

"This war is also known as the Dragon war or the War of Fire, but no one knows how long it lasted. It was a bloody war with countless losses on both side but in the end, Gwyn and his army won, gaining their independence. The once powerful Everlasting Dragons were brought on the brink of extinction. Those wo survived the war, fled. Finally free from the dragon's grasps, prosperity followed for all other races. After the War, Gwyn crowned himself Lord of Cinder and King of Lordran. He rewarded those who stood beside him. He fulfilled Nito's wish and gave him his own realm to put the souls of the deceased at ease and he allowed the Witches of Izalith to study their piece of The First Flame." He continued. Harry frowned at that.

"Wait, what do you mean by their piece of the First Flame? What happened to it?" Harry asked a little confused.

"When Gwyn and the others found the First Flame they decided to split it among each other and fuse it with their soul. Gwyn received half of it while Nito and the Witches split what was left between them. The Furtive Pygmy only received embers, which is now known as the Dark Soul, but I explain that later." He answered, happy that Harry was willing to listen to him ranting about a forgotten past.

"Did the First Flame disappear when they split it?" Harry asked again, it was a lot to take in. Yuri seemed surprised at his interest in the topic.

"No, well, not really at least. Gwyn realized that the First Flame was something very powerful and kept it in The Kiln of The First Flame, protecting it at all costs. Even after they had split it, the Fire still burned. I don't know the specific theory behind it either but it is probably very complicated soul bonding magic or something." He answered slightly amused, Harry gave a small smile in return. After he had explained that, he continued.

"Like I said before, after the war, everyone was free from the dragons and an age of prosperity started. This is the beginning of the Age of Fire. Gwyn had crowned himself King of Lordran and subjected everyone he deemed lesser than himself and his close followers. Instead of freeing every sentient being from the dragon's rule he just replaced it. Especially Giants, Goblins, Centaurs and other magical creatures suffered under his rule. He basically enslaved them and forced them to build cities and do other hard labor. One of these cities was Anor Londo, The city where Gwyn and all those that could wield Magic lived. He ordered the rebuilding of Izalith to please the Witches and, as thanks, build an archive to award Seath for his help. On top of that, he awarded seath a piece of his soul, allowing the malformed dragon to practice magic. The Furtive Pygmy had created the non-magical humans, they resided in small villages around Anor Londo. The Furtive Pygmy was never seen again. This Age lasted for a very long time, Seath created what is now known as the Art of Soul Magic. Gwyn and his followers, who resided in Anor Londo, were worshipped as gods by the non-magical humans. The magical creatures could never hope to challenge him so they remained enslaved. The Everlasting dragons and their kin were hunted and killed to near extinction. This time of peace came to an end by the accumulation of multiple problems. First of all, Gwyn had started to try and subject the non-magical humans. While most of them welcomed him and worshipped him as a God, there were a few who dared to oppose him. Secondly, the First Flame had begun to fade, scaring Gwyn." Harry was still listening with intent, his eyes never leaving Yuri as he told his story.

"Gwyn decided to punish the humans who opposed him and branded them with the Darksign. Cursing them to a fate worse than dead. This marks the beginning of the History of my kind, Harry." He stated as he moved his head a bit to the right, allowing him to see the small burning circle in his neck. Harry gasped.

"So that thing on your neck is the Darksign?" He asked. Yuri nodded and spoke up after a few minutes of silence.

"This is the mark of the Undead. The Darksign in itself isn't lethal by any means, it just shows that a person is cursed. Once said person dies, their souls leave their body, only to be replaced by the Dark Soul. This allows them to awake as an Undead, with no memories of their previous lives." He explained and Harry noticed Yuri's voice changing slightly. It went back to the emotionless and cold tone.

"So you don't remember who you were before you awoke?" Harry dared to ask. Yuri shook his head.

"No, I don't remember anything. I only saw 'Yuri' written on the tombstone so I presumed that was my name. I don't remember how old I was when I died or how I died or even in which year I lived. I only know that I am Undead now." He explained, clearly uncomfortable. Harry was beyond shocked. Granted, losing his parents hurt, a lot. But he could hang on to some memories. He could hear stories about them from Serious and Lupin. Harry than realized that Yuri couldn't have this. _No wonder he seemed so alone when I first met him. _Harry decided to steer away from this clearly sensitive topic.

"So, I had another question." He started sheepishly, hoping Yuri would abandon that emotionless voice of his. "What is Lordran and where is it, exactly?" He was happy to see Yuri slightly light up at that question.

"It is difficult to explain but you could compare Lordran back then to a country. I don't know if there were other kingdoms like that all those centuries ago. It is now long abandoned, dangerous creatures are the only ones left roaming the streets. I have been there when I first awoke as Undead but it is hidden with illusions, making it very hard to find." He explained, Harry nodded.

"So what happened next?" Harry asked, eager to hear the rest of the unknown history. Yuri smiled lightly at that.

"So with the first problem partially solved, Gwyn turned to the second problem. The First Flame was fading and he feared that if it ever extinguished completely, he may lose his power. Creating the perfect opportunity for non-magical humans and other magical creatures to seize control. The Witches of Izalith had tried to recreate the First Flame but it backfired. Instead of recreating the Flame they created abominations, also known as Demons. All but two Witches survived the ordeal, Qualana was one of them." He finished sadly. Harry noticed he mentioned his former mentor again and figured he missed her deeply. With a big sigh Yuri continued. "The Witches of Izalith were gone so Gwyn had to act fast. Nito refused to help and Seath had gone mad by knowledge. So Gwyn left Anor Londo in control of his daughter: Gwynevere. No one knows what happened to Gwyn after that but the situation became worse. The non-magical humans used Gwyn's absence to try and overthrow the magical humans to try and free the magical creatures. And of course, to take matters into their own hands. This is the moment in history every Undead is not proud of." He finished sadly, casting his gaze downwards. He sounded ashamed. Harry just waited, not sure what to say.

"Gwynevere used the Undead to quell the uprising. She ordered the Undead to kill anyone who dared opposed them. If the Undead refused they were simply tossed into the Abbys to wither away." He finally explained, he clearly sounded ashamed now. Harry decided to step in, it wasn't his fault, he wasn't there, these events took place a long time ago.

"You don't have to be ashamed of your past, Yuri. It happened a long time ago, they had no choice." Harry tried to comfort Yuri but by the look on his face, he figured it didn't quite work.

"No one knows how long the Undead did their bidding but eventually, we revolted too. All Undead vowed on that day that they would protect humanity and all other magical creatures from those who meant them harm." He explained further. He looked back at Harry. "Obviously, I wasn't there, but it is still part of my kind's history, and a very dark one at that. This revolt lead to the end of the Age of Fire. Gwyn was gone and Anor Londo's reign of power came to an end. Every race went their own way and, as they say, the rest is history." He finished his story, clearly affected by it. Harry didn't blame him for anything though. Before Harry could say anything he spoke up again.

"Centuries went by, and I am sure you know at least some of the things that happened in that time. The Rise of the Romans and countless of wars, you know, the things muggles learn in history." Harry nodded, he remembered some history lessons while he was in elementary school. "The magical side of humanity wasn't that much better either. A lot of wars started between humans and magical creatures or even among the creatures. The War between the Giants and humans is one example." Yuri explained and Harry wondered what role the Undead played in all this. It seemed that Yuri picked up on his thought and continued. "In most of these wars, the Undead were used by magical humans as cannon fodder. We were on the frontlines, fighting their battles." He bit angerly. Harry thought that he was angry with him and became worried. Yuri noticed the worry on his face and his angry quickly disappeared.

"I am not angry with you, Harry. Or with any other wizard or witch for that matter. It was a long time ago and I am not one to hold grudges. It's just that during these times of constant wars, our numbers diminished exponentially. Even though we were cursed, the Undead were once a proud people. We had towns of our own, even our own currency and economy, but everything was taken from us." He reassured Harry, making hem relax again. Harry could understand his friend's frustration and tried to cheer him up again.

"I am sorry, Yuri. I wish I could have seen one of these towns, they sound wonderful." Harry gave him a reassuring smile. Yuri gave him a smile of his own.

"They were, harry. Nowadays, these towns are deserted, just like the rest of Lordran, reduced to nothing but ruins." He sighed sadly. "Of course, then Grindelwald came in the early 20th century, committing mass murder. Many of Undead fell victim to him and not soon later, in the late 20th century, Voldemort took over, killing even more Undead." He continued his story, surprising Harry when he mentioned Voldemort.

"You know Voldemort?" Harry asked in a small voice. Yuri looked up with a questioning glance.

"I have never met him before or never fought against him but I know what he has done. I, like all other Undead, fought in the first war against him." He said and Harry was speechless. Hearing Yuri speak about the fate of his fellow Undead saddened him too. Yuri had shared all that so he was, at least, going to do the same.

"Do you know how the war ended?" He decided to ask first and would go from there. Yuri shook his head so he started explaining. "Voldemort was ripped out of his body when he tried to kill me after killing my parents. His killing curse backfired and left me only with a scar." He explained shortly, showing Yuri his scar. Yuri was astonished.

"So that's why the war ended so suddenly." He muttered. "I am sorry about your parents, Harry. No one should have to live without parents." He said honestly. Harry was about the reply curtly like he did to any other who mentioned his parents. But after a lot of thought he decided against it. If anyone knows how difficult it is to live without parents, it would be Yuri. He doesn't remember, he doesn't know how they look like, he never even knew them. So Harry replied.

"Thank you, Yuri." He thanked him sincerely. Yuri gave a friendly nod. "So what happened after the war?" Harry asked, wondering what happened to him and the other Undead after the war with Voldemort.

"At first, we helped to catch remaining Death Eaters but they all went into hiding as soon as their master disappeared." He started. Harry figured that, if his tone was anything to go by, the fate of the Undead wasn't a pleasant one. "We hoped that we would be allowed to settle somewhere, to live our lives in peace. We wouldn't have disturbed anyone but the Ministry didn't agree." He started his tone growing darker. "We were deemed to dangerous to walk around freely so they sent us the Undead Asylum." He finished while scowling at the ground. Harry had a feeling that this Undead Asylum wasn't a holiday destination.

"What's the Undead Asylum?" He asked, curiosity getting the better of him. If it were possible, Yuri's scowled even more, not looking up.

"The Undead Asylum is some sort of prison. Throughout the centuries, this has been used to contain Undead. The place is designed to break the mind and resolve of an Undead, turning them Hollow." He sneered, clearly angry. "After everything we did in the wars, they carted us of to that hellhole to rot." He continued bitterly and looked up. Harry could clearly see the anger in his eyes. Whatever the Asylum was, it had affected Yuri deeply. He even caught a hint of fear in his eyes. He decided to try and change to topic.

"What is a Hollow exactly?" He asked in a small voice, not sure if Yuri was willing to talk after his little outburst. After a rather long silence, Harry saw Yuri's face soften and silently breath a sigh of relief.

"A Hollow was once an Undead. Like I explained before, Undead are cursed. We are technically dead and yet we live in a way. The thing that keeps us alive is the Dark Soul within us. This Dark Soul is not intended for long usages, giving the Undead a very short lifespan, only the very strong willed can live for a very long time. The emotional state of an Undead is also a factor in how fast they turn Hollow. Once Hollow though, there is no turning back. There is no cure for it and there is no way around it, it is the fate of every Undead." He explained. Harry noticed that he wasn't even sad about it. It looked like he had already accepted his fate, this saddened Harry. To think that he could lose his friend like that with no way to prevent it. He voiced his concerns.

"You seem okay with it?" he asked unsure. Yuri gave him a weak smile.

"I have been Undead for over 19 years, Harry, probably closing in on 20 years. 16 of these years I spent in that blasted Asylum. I had enough time to come to terms with it." He reassured Harry but saw that it didn't do much. He stood up and put his hand on his shoulder and gave it a reassuring squeeze, making Harry look up at him. He offered a comforting smile and after some time Harry returned it. Once he was sure Harry was okay again, he sat back down in his chair.

"How long do you think you have left?" Harry decided to ask. Yuri was taken aback by this question. No one had ever asked him that before for the simple reason that nobody cared to ask. He found that he was smiling slightly.

"It is difficult to predict how long I will be able to fight of the Curse, Harry. There are a number of unpredictable reasons that could either prolong or shorten my lifespan." He answered honestly, seeing that Harry was still affected by his response he spoke up again to reassure him. "The life of an Undead is often a lonely one, Harry. I was fortunate enough to meet Qualana who taught me everything I know but other than that, I had no one." He started and Harry raised an eyebrow at this, wondering where this was going. "Making friends is something that Undead simply don't even bother to do, we are used to the loneliness and function better on our own. But, I admit, that our friendship is something I never wish away." He said heartfelt. Harry was taken aback by the honesty in his eyes. "I thank your for willing to listen to my little rant and I promise you that I will help you in every way I can until I finally succumb to the Curse." He finished, Harry couldn't believe his ears. Now he knew why Yuri hadn't told him that he was Undead. Now he knew why Yuri acted coldly towards everyone. His musings when he first met Yuri were correct. He was alone and didn't have any friends at all. Harry smiled and gave Yuri a friendly nod.

"Thank you, Yuri. The feeling is mutual. Even though we've known each other for barely a week, I value your friendship greatly." Yuri grinned at this and stoop up. Before Harry could registered what happened he was pulled up by Yuri and embraced in a friendly manly hug while Yuri patted him on his back. Harry grinned in response.

"I think it is time for you to go back to your dormitory, my friend, it is getting late." Yuri said when they broke of the friendly hug, a grin still etched on his face.

"I guess." Harry started, he too had a grin on his face. Even though he had known Hermoine and Ron for over three years he felt like their friendship couldn't even compare to the friendship he was building with Yuri. "I see you tomorrow then, Yuri. Thank you again for sharing and good night." He said goodbye and with that he left, still trying to process everything he had heard while making his way back to the dormitories.

He was glad that both Hermoine and Ron were nowhere to be seen once he arrived in the Common Room. He quickly made his way upstairs to his room and shut his curtains surrounding his bed. He got ready to sleep and crawled under the sheets. He smiled to himself, happy that Yuri was willing to share his side of the story. He was still a bit disturbed that Yuri had talked about his death so careless. _Perhaps there is a way to at least slow down the process of Hollowing. I'll have to look into that. _He vowed to help his newfound friend. He hoped that Ron and Hermoine would see reason and give the man a chance too.

XXX

Fleur was ecstatic. The past week she had taken all the tests to determine if she would join Madame Maxime to go to Hogwarts to try and compete in the Triwizard Tournament. The tests were of course, very difficult but she managed. Today, Madame Maxime had announced who was going with her and she was chosen! Now, she finally has the chance to show everyone what she is capable of. She quickly made her way to her room, with a smile on her face, ignoring all the sneers her fellow female students sent her way. And ignoring all the hungry looks she got from the male students. When she arrived at her room she knocked first to make sure she wouldn't disturb Gabrielle. She had talked to Madame Maxime and explained her sister's situation. Madame Maxime was angry that a couple of her students had treated her that way and gladly agreed that Gabrielle could stay with her. They had conjured a bed for her and made the room a bit larger with the help of enlargement charms. Gabrielle opened the door and Fleur smile grew even brighter.

"How was it?" Asked Gabrielle as she let Fleur enter the room. Her response was to pull her sister in a hug and spin around, Gabrielle laughing the entire time. "I take it went well?" She inclined, still smiling.

"Yes, I am allowed to accompany Madam Maxime to Hogwarts to compete in the Tournament!" She exclaimed.

"I am so happy for you, Fleur! Make sure you win the damn thing."

"I need to be chosen as Champion first, Gabrielle, but I will try my best." She said, suddenly a bit worried that she might not get choses as Champion. Gabrielle saw this and nudged her.

"Of course you will be chosen, those Englishmen won't know what hit them." She said with a smirk, making Fleur chuckle a little.

"Thank you for your support, Gabrielle."

"No problem, Fleur." She hugged her sister again. After some time Gabrielle realized that, when her sister is in Scotland she would be alone again. Her face fell which didn't go unnoticed by Fleur.

"What's wrong, Gabrielle?" Fleur asked concerned.

"Oh, I was just wondering if I could perhaps go with you, to support you and all that." Gabrielle asked sheepishly. Fleur read between the lines and knew what she meant. She was scared that she would be left alone again when she was gone. She had, of course, already thought about that and planned to talk to Madame Maxime about it tomorrow. She gave her sister a sympathetic smile.

"I already thought about that, Gabrielle. I'll ask madame Maxime tomorrow." She saw Gabrielle smile brightly which only caused her own smile to appear again. They spent the rest of the evening doing some homework and reading about the Triwizard Tournament to prepare herself. She would not leave her sister behind again, the image of her standing in front of her door, crying, was still etched into her mind. She vowed to never leave her sister's side again and would stay here if Gabrielle wasn't allowed to come with her.

**A/N: So, I apologize for taking so long but I spent a lot of time on this chapter. As you can see, I started exploring the lore within this little universe I created by combining Harry Potter and Dark Souls and I wanted to get everything right. A bit more conversation between Yuri and Harry to reinforce their friendship and of course, our two lovely French Ladies preparing to go to Scotland. I hope the ones who are not familiar with Dark Souls understand the background I explained in the story. If not, feel free to ask me! Dark Souls is a pretty complicated universe so I gave it my own twist. As always, feel free to leave your thoughts in the reviews and have a nice day!**


	6. Chapter 6

It was Monday afternoon. Fleur found herself in her and Gabrielle's room inside the carriage that was taking them to Hogwarts. She had talked to Madam Maxime yesterday. With a lot of persuasion from her parents and herself, she allowed Gabrielle to travel with her. Of course, she would need to do all of her homework and would need to learn all the subjects on her own but Fleur had reassured her that she would help with that. She didn't realize however, that they would go to Hogwarts this early. Madame Maxime had told them that the Tournament would start on the 31st of October but hadn't given an exact date of departure. Fleur didn't mind, however, the less time she has to spent with her fellow students, the better. Almost all of the 20 chosen students were female, only 4 of them were male. There was some sort of common dining hall in the carriage but she decided to eat with Gabrielle in their room. Their fellow students weren't exactly pleasant company.

The carriage was of course, magically altered to contain 20 bedrooms, the common dining hall and Madame Maxime's room. Breaking out of her musings, she saw Gabrielle sitting on the small desk in their room, making some of her homework. Fleur was happy that Gabrielle was allowed to accompany her. She figured that the students from Hogwarts and Durmstrang wouldn't treat her or her sister any different from the ones in Beauxbatons. She was taken out of her thoughts by Gabrielle's voice.

"What are you thinking about?" She asked, not looking up from her homework. Fleur looked in her direction.

"About the Tournament." She tried but her sister stopped writing and turned around with a raised eyebrow. She saw right through her little lie. Fleur sighed before answering. "I was thinking about how the students from the other schools would react to us." She admitted defeated. Gabrielle's face softened.

"I hope that at least some of them will treat us normally." She started seriously. Gabrielle too had to endure the nasty remarks from her fellow students because of her size. She was fifteen years old but she had the body of a barely twelve year old. She too wanted someone to see her for who she was. "But I am not keeping my hopes up, though." She admitted. "We are what we are, Fleur, we cannot change that." Fleur couldn't help but note that she sounded sad and decided to voice her concerns.

"Do you sometimes wish you weren't a Veela, Gabrielle?" She dared to ask. Fleur had never been embarrassed by her heritage but the constant shunning hurt her, sometimes even more than she dared to admit. She herself never wished that she were a normal human, even though she sometimes saw her newfound abilities more as a curse than anything else. Gabrielle frowned at that.

"No, granted the treatment that I get hurt, a lot, but I would never give up my heritage. It is what makes us, well, us." She answered honestly, a frown still etched on her face. She didn't know where that question came from but figured that something bothered her sister. "Do you, Fleur?" She asked. She saw a flash of sadness and regret on her sister's face.

"No, not really." She started, Gabrielle noticed that she was struggling to voice her thoughts so she gave her sister time. "I would never give it up either, like you said, it what makes us, us. It is who we are. But sometimes, I can't help but wonder how it would be to not have all these powers." She admitted. It was true, she often wondered what it would be like to not have an allure that entrances all men whenever she entered a room. Granted, she managed to get her allure under control for most of the time.

"I understand, Fleur, there is nothing to be ashamed off. I bet that Maman had the same thoughts when she was our age. She warned us about it, remember?" Gabrielle reassured her, she gave a smile in return as she remembered the support and the tips her mother had given her. "I am sure there will be people that will see us, Fleur. And if that isn't the case, well, we still have each other. We have supported each other for so long, and I am sure we will continue to do so." She continued, Fleur gave her a grateful smile. She was sometimes blown away by how mature her little sister already was and how she succeeded time and time again to sheer her up. "Besides, I am sure that you will catch everyone's attention when you win that Tournament." She added playfully, making Fleur chuckle.

"You better finish your homework before we get there, I am sure you'll want to explore Hogwarts once we arrive." She said with a smirk, which only grow when Gabrielle groaned. As Gabrielle continued her homework, Fleur couldn't help but smile lightly. Her sister managed to quell her concerns and reassured her that everything would be fine. And, she knew, that as long as they had each other, they indeed would be fine. The other students be damned.

XXX

Yesterday, Harry had found himself in the presence of Yuri for almost the entire day. He had noticed a change in Yuri's behavior since their talk the previous evening. Yuri was, of course, still rather closed off, especially about Qualana and the Asylum. Harry didn't want to know what horrors that place contained to scare someone like that. But, Yuri told him more about his travels in Lordran and his many battles against Death eaters during the war against Voldemort. Harry had invited him yesterday to eat dinner and supper with him in the great hall. Both Ron and Hermione were avoiding him like the plague and he figured Yuri could use the company. Yuri had accompanied him and it had started a pretty interesting conversation when they took a seat at the end of the Gryffindor table.

Harry had noticed that Yuri was taking rather small portions of food so Harry had decided to ask him what was wrong. "Something wrong, Yuri? Are you not hungry?" He had asked a bit concerned. Yuri's response had surprised him. He had chuckled with an amused look on his face.

"Don't worry, Harry, nothing is wrong." He had assured his friends. He had forgotten to mention a small detail to Harry. "I forgot to mention a couple of more details about Undead, Harry." He had whispered, not wanting the other students to know his true identity just yet. "Undead technically don't need to eat anything. You know, with us being death and all that." He had added the last bit with amusement in his eyes, still keeping his voice to a whisper. Yuri had decided to elaborate further when he had seen the confused look on his face. "Undead don't need to eat, however, we can if we really want to. I chose to never bother with it, but you asked so nicely and I figured you could use the company, so I didn't refuse." He had said, still with a smile. Harry couldn't help but smile in response.

"Thank you." Harry had answered curtly but honestly, before starting eating again. He had decided to ask more about his friend. "So, are there other things Undead don't need to do?" He asked between bites. By this time, Yuri had already finished his small meal, smiling again when he had asked that question.

"We don't need to sleep either, again, with us being death and what not." He had started. Surprised but happy that Harry had shown interest in what it meant to be Undead. Yuri had never met someone who was genuinely interested in his life or his past. Both his personal past and the past of his Kind. "We can sleep too, if we want to, but I've never felt tired in my entire existence as Undead. So, again, I never bothered with it." Harry had been surprised by this. Did that really mean that Yuri had never slept for the past 19 years?

"Does that mean you've never slept for the past 19 years?" He had asked with disbelief. "What have you been doing at night for this past week?" He had asked before Yuri could answer. Yuri had been very amused by this.

"Yes, I never saw the use in it and sleeping in the Asylum was impossible." He had said but had quickly continued to not linger in the memories of the Asylum. "And, I have been training, my time in the Asylum has done more harm than I originally thought." He had started and Harry couldn't help but wonder what had happened exactly in that place but had decided not to ask him. "I've found a very nice clearing between the Black lake and the edge of the Forbidden forest. It is nearly impossible to see from anywhere in the castle and I know no one dares to enter the Forbidden Forest, giving me a perfect spot." He had explained. Harry had decided to tease him a bit.

"Oh, I see how it is." He had started with a teasing tone, resulting in Yuri giving him a confused look. "You are already training for our little duel you promised me. That scared that I would beat you?" He had finished with a smug grin. Yuri's face broke out in a grin too when he had noticed the teasing. This grin had soon morphed into a thoughtful expression. Before Harry had the chance to ask what he was thinking about, Yuri had spoken up.

"You know, I think it wouldn't be a bad idea to train together." He had started. "You told me you wanted to get stronger in case Voldemort comes back, so if you want, you can train with me in my little training area." He had continued. It was true, Harry had voiced his concerns regarding Voldemort to Yuri but figured he couldn't do much about it. Harry had been beyond surprised at his offer, though. "Of course, this wouldn't take place after midnight, you still have your classes you need to attend. I suggest we could start whenever you want in the late afternoon and eat supper together after the training session and perhaps continue a bit after that. Of course, if you want to, that is." He had offered. Harry didn't need to think about it twice and had gladly accepted his offer, making Yuri smile like a madman.

And this is where Harry found himself now, in the clearing Yuri had described him. They had just arrived and Harry had to admit that it was indeed a nice and quiet place. To the left were the trees of the Forbidden Forest and to the left were the banks of the Black Lake with a rather large clearing in the middle. A couple of trees adorned this clearing but they were few and far between.

"So, How do you suggest we train?" Harry asked unsure. He knew that he could never learn Undead spells and that Yuri could never use the spells he used. Yuri just answered with a smirk first.

"We duel of course." He answered mischievously. Harry was definitely a bit concerned now, he was no where near Yuri's skill. Yuri saw his uncertainty. "Don't worry, Harry, You'll do great. I am pretty rusty, remember?" He reassured him before stepping a few meters further before turning around to face him. "So to clarify, all sorts of spells are allowed." He started and Harry immediately frowned at that. Yuri saw this and quickly continued. "Don't worry, I'll be sure to power down my spells and I can take a few hits, Harry. Consider me a living training dummy." He said with smile which made Harry chuckle lightly and forget his nerves.

"Okay, May the best win, Yuri." He said as he grabbed his wand and bowed in respect, indicating that he was ready to duel. Yuri nodded and bowed too, with one hand over his chest. He unsheathed his sword and just stood there, his shield still strapped on his back. Harry had no idea what to expect from him. He figured that the spells he saw him use against the Death Eaters were only a few from his arsenal. After seeing Yuri watch him with a rather smug grin, he decided to go on the offensive.

"Stupefy!" He yelled. He didn't know that many offensive spells, let alone damaging offensive spells so he would have to do with the spells he knew. Yuri seemed so smile before he dashed to the side, dodging the stunning spell. Harry saw the tip of his silver sword light up in a bright blue before a small blue projectile sped towards him. "Protego!" He quickly yelled to protect himself. He saw Yuri preparing for another attack, this time with his left gloved hand. He saw that bright white yellowish light again in the palm of his hands, his eyes widened when he saw what was forming. Instead of the healing spell he had used on Katie, a lightening bolt formed in his hand. Yuri threw it right at his torso, Harry had just enough time to dodge it or he would've been toast. He decided to counter with a bombarda spell right at his feet. This time Yuri dodged it by rolling to his right, Harry was about to cast another bombarda spell until he saw a fireball coming straight at him. He quickly erected a protego barrier to protect himself. If he wanted to win this, he would need to think of something, and fast.

Yuri noticed the power behind Harry's spells but the lack of control worried him a bit. He didn't show it but that blasting spell was stronger than he thought and had scraped his leg a bit. Of course, he was used to physical injuries and would deal with it later. He decided to put some pressure on his friend and threw one fireball after the other, forcing Harry on the defensive. All the while he slowly closed the gap between the two. He noticed Harry creating some sort of magical barriers to protect himself. He quickly casted another spell with his sword, intended to confuse Harry while he threw another greater fireball at him. Harry dodged the fireball this time and started casting those blasting spells again. Yuri had to halt his advance and decided to change up tactics. The five small blue orbs still floating above him. He quickly grabbed his shield from his back after dodging another one of Harry's attacks. He hovered his swords over his shield in a downwards motion, creating a strong blue layer atop of his silver shield.

Harry had unleashed a couple of blasting spells, which were easily avoided by Yuri. He was running out of ideas, especially now that there were five small blue orbs floating above his head and that he equipped his shield. However, Harry was determined to win, and he was going to give it his best.

"Stupify" He yelled once again, hoping to stop Yuri's advance. Yuri blocked it with his shield, it looked like it absorbed it, Harry had never seen anything like that before. The tip of Yuri's sword light up again, Harry saw another blue projectile coming towards him, this one was a bit bigger than the previous one. He erected a Protego barrier to protect himself before lowering it again to cast one of his own spells. The incantation for the spell he was about to cast died on his lips when he saw the five small projectiles, that had been floating above Yuri's head, speeding towards him. He instinctively dodged to the side. Thinking the spell had missed, he was about to cast Bombarda until he felt a stinging in his left side. It felt like someone was pushing needles in his side, he hissed slightly in pain. He looked sideways just in time to see the fifth projectile slam into his side, intensifying the stinging even more. Yuri gave him a nod and sheathed his sword and put his shield on his back, the blue glow disappearing when he did this. Harry put his own wand away too, frowning, he really thought he had dodged whatever those things were. Yuri closed the distance with a smile.

"That was a very good fight, Harry." Yuri said cheerfully. Harry, however, still frowned a bit. Yuri noticed this. "What's wrong?"

"My spells didn't even came close in hitting you, Yuri. And I thought I dodged that last spell." He answered dejected, casting his gaze downwards. He hoped he would have done better than that. Yuri gave his shoulder a reassuring squeeze, prompting him to look back up.

"You did great, Harry. You dodged or blocked almost all my spells too. And you did hit me." He said with a smile, pointing to his leg. Harry could see that his leg was a bit burned, he figured that one of his blasting spells had hit his friend. Before he could ask if he was okay, Yuri continued. "And that last spell is called Homing Soulmass, it tracks the target, even if they dodge. I tried to throw you of guard and it worked." He said with a smile. "But by no means did you do bad, Harry, you have a lot of potential." Yuri reassured his friend. Harry finally smiled too.

"Thank you, are you sure you are okay?" He asked, a bit concerned of the burns on his legs. It seemed that his clothes had taken the majority of the hit. Yuri waved his concerns away.

"Yeah, it's nothing, really. I've had way worse, I'll treat it later." He reassured him once again. He sat on the bank of the Dark Lake, inviting Harry to do the same. They sat in silence for a bit until Yuri spoke up again. "You asked me to help you and I will, Harry. But you need to know that I can't teach you the spells I use. They are way to dangerous." He started, Harry noticed he was struggling to find the right words.

"I know, Yuri, and thank you. What do you think I should do next?" Harry asked. Yuri was a far more skilled fighter than he was, even if he claimed the Asylum had weakened him.

"I suggest that you read a lot of books, to learn about new spells. No offense, but your variety in offense was kind of lacking." He said apologetic. Harry didn't take it as an insult, however, it was true. His knowledge of offensive spells was fairly limited. Defense Against the Dark Arts was supposed to teach this stuff but the teachers in his first and second year weren't that competent. He admitted though that Professor Lupin had helped him a great deal in third year by teaching him the Patronus charm. Sadly, this wasn't an offensive spell. "I suggest searching in the library for books about spells you could possibly learn. Or perhaps even ask teachers about it. I can't teach them but if you want to try some of them, feel free to ask."

"None taken, Yuri. It is the truth. I think asking teachers might not be the greatest idea but I'll check the library." Harry answered. He was still curious to the spells Yuri had used and decided to just ask him. "What were the spells you used? I've never seen anything like that before."

"The first spell I used was a Soul Arrow. It is a widely used spell by Undead because it is rather fast to cast and it keeps your opponent on their toes. I tuned it down to only have a stinging effect if it would've hit you, of course." He started, still surprised to see that Harry was so interested in Undead magic. Harry listened intently. He liked learning new things about Undead. "The second spell was a Miracle." He started, Harry shot him a questioning glance at this.

"Aren't miracles supposed to be healing spells?" He asked. He remembered Yuri telling him that Miracles were the equivalent to their healing spells. Yuri chuckled slightly at this.

"The majority of the Miracles are healing spells or non-damage inflicting spells. However, there are a few offensive ones as well. Remember when I told you about Gwyn's fight with the Everlasting Dragons?" He asked his friend, who was deep in thought, probably trying to remember all the things he had told him the evening he came clean about his true identity.

"Yes, Gwyn used lightening spells to kill the dragons." He started, he remembered Yuri telling him how Gwyn had killed the dragons with Lightening. His mouth fell open in shock once he came to a conclusion. "You threw lightening at me that could kill a dragon?" He exclaimed incredulously, Yuri laughed at his reaction.

"Not really, I used Lightening Spear, the weakest version of the lightening spells." Still highly amused by Harry's expression he continued. "Don't worry, it would've done barely anything if it would've hit you."

"But still, you threw lightening at me!" Harry exclaimed again, this time with a laugh.

"The fire spells I used were basic. They are obviously called Fireball and it's more powerful successor, Greater Fireball." He continued once their shared laughter had died down. Harry was more interested in the last two spells he had used.

"What were those last two spells you used? And what did you do with your shield? " He asked. Yuri was happy at his friend's interest of his use of magic.

"The spell on my shield is called Magic Shield. It creates a barrier on top of the shield that absorbs a limited amount of spells before depleting." He explained it.

"Seems useful." Harry concluded, Yuri nodded.

"It is, saved my life a couple of times already." He said, looking back at the lake, lost in thought for a moment. Harry was still a bit unnerved by how casual Yuri spoke about death. Or more accurately, his death. He didn't let it show though.

"The other projectile you blocked was Soul Spear. A variant of the Soul Arrow but the Spear is capable of penetrating armor, making it very useful." He explained after he gathered his thoughts again. Harry was a bit confused at this. If that spell was able to penetrate armor, how come it didn't penetrate his Protego shield?

"How was I able to block that Soul Spear then?"

"First of all, I tuned it down. Secondly, it is capable of penetrating real armor, magical shields are another matter, there are other spells for that but I don't know how to cast them." He said honestly. "And the last spell was, like I said before, Homing Soulmass. It tracks the target until it hits something." He finished explaining.

"Are you planning on eventually learning new spells too?" Harry asked. He could see that Yuri was both confused and taken aback by this question.

"I've never really thought about that to be honest." He started, frowning. "I could always count on my knowledge of pyromancies but after my time in the Asylum it seems that even my knowledge of that has sort of withered away." He said, now scowling a bit at the ground. "I suppose I could learn new spells once I remaster my familiar pyromancies." He concluded, his frown returning. Harry felt a bit guilty for bringing this up. It was clear, once again, that whatever had happened in the Asylum, affected Yuri a great deal. It was his turn to reassure his friend, and so he did.

"You are a great fighter, Yuri, never doubt that. Your fight against those Death Eaters proved that." He started, Yuri looked up, glancing at him. "You promised to help me, well, I will promise you the same. I will help you in any way I can help." Yuri smiled at that, dipping his head in thanks.

"That fight wasn't anything special to be honest. The first two didn't even know I was there, the third was unfortunate enough to get caught in the Firestorm." He started, quickly explaining the name when he saw Harry's confusion at the last name. "That's the name of the fire pillars." Harry nodded. "And after that I had help from Miss Spinnet."

"Still, it was pretty impressive if you ask me." Harry said honestly.

"Thank you, Harry. And I think your suggestion isn't a bad idea at all. It would be good for me to expend my knowledge of Miracles and Soul Magic once I have refamiliarized myself with Pyromancies." He said confidently, Harry smiled.

"I think it is time for us to head back. If I remember correctly, the other students will be arriving today." He said while standing up. He faintly remembered Dumbledore saying something about that.

"Oh right, the Tournament, almost forgot about that." He stood up too and together they made their way towards the castle.

Once they arrived they saw the majority of the students, and Dumbledore, standing outside, probably waiting for the arrival of the foreign students. Both he and Yuri Joined the crowd. He spotted Ron and Hermione, the latter giving him a worried look. He sighed, Yuri looked down, silently asking him what was wrong. He just shook his head and Yuri let it slide.

"LOOK OVER THERE! AT THE LAKE!" One of the students yelled. Soon enough a massive ship emerged from under the water, coming to a halt. A little bit later a stern looking man came walking towards their Headmaster. He was followed by his students, they wore thick coats.

"Albus" The man greeted the Headmaster, enveloping him in a friendly hug.

"Igor" Dumbledore greeted back. Harry saw them talking to each other but couldn't exactly hear what they were saying. "Your students may choose where they sit." Was the only thing Harry heard. The Durmstrang students made their way into the castle.

"LOOK IN THE SKY! WHAT IS THAT?" one student asked, resulting in every other student in the crowd looking up. It was a flying carriage, pulled by what looked like horses with wings. It landed not far from Hagrid's hut. A very tall woman stepped out of the carriage followed by her students. They wore blue robes with matching beret. Harry noticed that the majority were female. This didn't go unnoticed by Yuri who looked down at him with a smirk.

"See something you like, Harry?" Harry elbowed his friend but couldn't hide his blush. This made Yuri laugh silently, as not to draw attention to them. Harry quickly glared at his friend before looking back to see Dumbledore greet the tall woman and their students. He couldn't hear what they were saying either because they were ordered to take place in the Great Hall by McGonagall.

Harry immediately noticed that the tables were longer than they originally are, probably to accommodate for their guests. He took a seat at the far end of the table, closest to the teachers table in the front. Isolating himself from his fellow housemates. He still didn't feel like talking to Ron and Hermione either, and would rather be in Yuri's company. However, he saw his friend hesitate.

"C'mon, Yuri, take a seat." He offered. Yuri quickly threw a glance at the teacher's table but soon after took his place opposite of Harry. They quietly talked some more about their duel, waiting for supper to be served.

XXX

Fleur was extremely annoyed when she and her sister entered the Great Hall. She diminished her allure as best as she could but it seemed that the students of Hogwarts had no self-control whatsoever. All the male students' eyes were glazed over as soon as they even looked at her for a second. The female students were sending her glares. If looks could kill, she would've been death one hundredth times over. She felt her sister squeeze her hand reassuringly. She looked down and gave her a small smile.

She noticed that all the Durmstrang students took place at the table on her far left. While the students of her school took place at the first table on her right. All the students quickly took their seat, leaving her and her sister with very few options. All she really wanted was to sit somewhere in peace.

"I think I see a place over there." Her sister whispered to her while pointing to the end of the table on the far right. She saw two men sitting at the end of the table, quietly talking to each other. They left a rather large amount of space between themselves and the rest of the students at the table. They didn't have a choice so they made their over there.

XXX

Harry's conversation with his friend was interrupted by a voice speaking behind him. He saw Yuri's gaze shifting from him to the person standing behind him. Harry could faintly see confusion on his face before it disappeared again.

"Excusez-moi, are these seats free?" They asked in a heavy accent, Harry turned to answer them. He saw two Beauxbatons students standing before him, they looked very much alike so he presumed they were sisters. They also looked very annoyed, though, he had no idea why. He locked eyes with he oldest, and was momentarily lost in her deep blue eyes. She was very pretty but Harry quickly gathered his thoughts again to not make a fool out of himself.

"Yes, please take a seat." He offered politely with a small smile. They both looked a bit bewildered by this but quickly smiled politely at both him and Yuri. Yuri was merely watching the exchange, giving him a worried glance before his neutral expression returned. The oldest witch took a seat besides him, while the youngest, who could not been older than 12, took a seat next to Yuri. Harry figured he should probably introduce himself, but before he could, Dumbledore took place at the front of the Great Hall.

"Silence, please." He started, his wand at his throat. "First of all, I want to welcome the students of Beauxbaton and Durmstrang. I hope you like your stay here. Now, The Triwizard Tournament will be held here, on the 30th October, the Goblet will be ignited. You'll then have the chance to enter your name until the Halloween feast in the evening of the 31th October." Murmers started amongst the students. "The Tournament is dangerous, so we have decided to draw an age line around the Goblet, only students who are 17 or older can enter." It seemed that the younger students didn't like this. "It is for your own good, the Tournament was cancelled because of the danger, and even though we made it safer, it is still very dangerous." The Headmaster continued, this shut most of the students up. "The most important purpose of this Tournament, however, is reinforcing the relationship between our three schools. I hope new friendships will be created this year. Now, that will be all, enjoy supper." He ended before walking back towards the teachers table. Soon after, food appeared on the table. Harry didn't recognize some of the dishes and figured they probably were dishes from the other two countries. He saw the two women take some of the dishes he didn't recognize. He also saw them exchange a look before the one beside him spoke up.

"Excusez-moi, I haven't introduced myself yet." She started, looking at both him and Yuri, who had barely taken any food at all. "I am Fleur, Fleur Delacour. Nice meeting you." She said while giving both men a friendly nod. Harry was about to return the greeting when the girl next to Yuri spoke up.

"I am her sister, Gabrielle Delacour, nice meeting you." The girl said with a smile to both men.

"Nice meeting you, Fleur, Gabrielle." He said politely to both women. "I am Harry, Harry Potter." As he introduced himself he saw the surprise on both their faces, he inwardly groaned at this. However, he was pleasantly surprised when the surprise quickly went away, which he was very grateful for. He hoped that perhaps, they too, would see past his fame like Yuri and the three Quidditch chasers. When he looked back at his friend, he saw the hesitation on his face and Harry quickly realized why. Yuri didn't want to introduce himself, afraid that they might figure out what he really is. While Harry didn't have a problem with it, not many people shared the same sentiments. Eventually, after he gave his friend a gentle nod, Yuri introduced himself.

"I am Yuri. Nice meeting you, Misses Delacour." He curtly said, but formally. Harry smiled at his friend's formal tone. It had taken him a few days to address him as Harry and not Mister Potter, he found it slightly amusing. Harry was a bit worried, however, at the confused look on both their faces, probably for the lack of last name. Again, the confusion quickly vanished from both their faces. They made some small talk while eating, talking about their home country, France and their lives at Beauxbatons. While Harry talked about life in England and Hogwarts. Yuri, for the most part, just listened while the three of them talked.

"So what year are you in Yuri?" Fleur asked when they were all finished eating. Probably curious why he had barely talked. He saw Yuri tense up.

"I am not a student here, Miss Delacour, I am a guest." He started and elaborated further. "Dumbledore offered me to stay here, to make sure the Tournament is safe." Harry saw that both Gabrielle and Fleur knew that there was more to that. He saw Yuri sigh a breath of relief when she let it slide and turned to him to ask a question. "And you, Harry?" She asked, Harry liked how she said his name.

"I am in my fourth year." He answered. He was about to ask in which years they were but hesitated. It wasn't polite to ask a woman about her age, right? Both Gabrielle and Fleur seemed amused by his hesitation, even Yuri had a feint smile on his lips.

"I am in my seventh year and I will try to enter the Tournament." She said, still amused by Harry's hesitation. "My sister is in her fifth year and came to support me." She continued while Gabrielle nodded. It was Yuri and Harry's time to be confused. Gabrielle seemed barely 12 years old, how could she be in fifth year already. He didn't see the concerned glances the sisters shared. He did however, hear Gabrielle sigh before saying something in French that neither he nor Yuri understood. Fleur looked uncertain, so with another sigh, Gabrielle spoke up, looking between Harry and Yuri, uncertainty clearly in her eyes.

"My sister and I are Veela. We age differently, hence my size." She started, looking at both men to see their reactions, as was Fleur. They both smiled slightly when they didn't see anything but curiosity in both their eyes. Fleur thought she even saw understanding in Yuri's eyes, but wasn't sure. They had both been surprised to see that both men seemed to be immune to her allure, it was a pleasant surprise however.

Harry remembered Hermione telling him about a bit about Veela at the Quidditch World Cup. The Bulgarian cheerleaders were Veela, Hermione had told him that they were beautiful women who could enthrall men, or so Hermione had said. Harry could see the French witches watching him and Yuri closely, probably awaiting their reaction. Before he could say anything to reassure them it didn't bother him, Yuri spoke up.

"I take it that's the reason why the majority of the female students are glaring at you?" He inquired. He felt sorry for them, during their talk he had seen how the other students glared at them while the male students seemed to lose all brain functions. He knew how it felt to be judged based on what you are rather on who you are, he understood them, even if he only met them a few hours ago. From what Harry had told him, he too knew how it felt to be treated that way. His friend hated the fame.

"Yes, It is also the reason why we didn't want to sit with our fellow Beauxbaton students, we are not exactly on friendly terms." Fleur sadly sighed, Gabrielle seemed sad too. "They do not like us very much." She muttered. Harry felt sorry and decided to try and cheer them up.

"Well, I think this can be the start of a beautiful friendship." He said with a big smile. Yuri chuckled lightly, nodding his head. Gabrielle and Fleur perked up, their uncertainties forgotten, returning the men's smiles in kind.

"Thank you, Harry, Yuri, that means more to us than you could ever know." Gabrielle said honestly, a small smile still on both her and her sister's lips. It was quite rare for Veela to make friends, especially male friends. She saw Madame Maxime standing up from the teacher's table. That meant that they had to go back to the carriage. "I think we have to go, Fleur." She said to her sister, indicating her to look at Madame Maxime, who was now saying goodbye to Dumbledore. "Well, it was nice meeting you, Harry, Yuri." She gave both of them a big smile. She, like her sister, didn't have any friends, she was ecstatic at the thought of finally making friends. She stood up. "I hope we can do this again, sometime." She stood up and saw her sister nod in confirmation that she too wanted to do this again.

"Right, It was nice meeting you, Harry and Yuri. I too hope we can do this again." She said honestly while standing up. Giving them a polite and friendly smile. She had genuinely a good time talking to the both of them, it didn't happen often that men could control themselves around her, it was a nice change. And if the big smile on her sister's face was any indication, she too had a great time. Harry quickly shared a look with Yuri before he spoke up.

"We would like that." He started. He had a good time too, he really didn't meet a lot of people who just talked with him about normal day things. Most of the people asked him about everything he went through, checking if the rumors were true. It was nice that the French witches didn't treat him like that and hoped that, indeed, friendships could be made. He saw the concern flash in Yuri's eyes, however. In fact, he had seen it throughout the talk. The mask that he wore when they first met was firmly in place back again. "Perhaps we can eat together from now on?" he asked. He was happy when he saw them nod. "We'll see you tomorrow morning, then. Good night." He finished with a smile. He heard Yuri speak up.

"It was nice meeting you, Misses Delacour, see you tomorrow. Good night." He said with a small smile.

"Gabrielle and Fleur are fine, Yuri, no need to be so formal." Gabrielle said slightly amused. "Bonne nuit, à demain." She said her farewell, waiting for her sister.

"Bonne nuit, à demain." Fleur said, giving them both a smile before turning around and walking out of the great hall with her sister, following their headmistress.

Harry immediately turned towards his friends, intending in confronting him about his concerns. "What's wrong, Yuri?" He inquired, he could hear him let out a big sigh.

"I am concerned." Was the only thing he said. He sounded hesitant, like he wasn't entirely sure himself. Harry inclined him to go on. With another sigh he continued, looking down. It reminded Harry of the night he told him his true identity. "I am concerned about their reaction if they ever found out what I am. They already seemed suspicious because my lack of last name."

"Do you think it would bother them that much?" He answered after giving it a bit of thought. They were fairly open with them being Veela. He voiced this, trying to reassure his friend. "They were fairly open about them being Veela, right? By the looks of it they know how it feels to be judged simply because of what you are. Don't you think they will understand?"

"That is true." He started, still unsure. "But still, there is a difference between them and me, Harry. They are not considered a danger to anyone." Harry saw that it bothered his friend a great deal.

"You know what, see what the following week gives, and perhaps you can tell them this weekend?" He suggested. Yuri considered his words.

"I guess I can do that." He said, looking back up with a sad smile. "Thank you, Harry." He said honestly.

"You are more than welcome, Yuri." He smiled back, happy that he would at least consider it. "I think we should head back, the majority of the students are leaving." He said when he noticed everyone was getting up. They both stood up and made their way towards the Gryffindor Common Room. Harry accompanied Yuri first to his room and bid him goodnight before going back to his room. He reflected back on their supper and their meeting with Fleur and Gabrielle. He liked them, they were friendly and easy to talk to and they didn't treat him like so many others would. He really hoped that Yuri would learn to trust them like he had trust him.

XXX

Yuri sat in his chair at his desk, deep in thought. Harry's words held some truth but still, the concern was still there, in the back of his mind. It was true that both French students seemed open with their identity. In fact, he really wanted to tell them what he really was, to ensure them that he knew how it felt to be treated that way but decided against it. He didn't want to scare them away. If he were completely honest, he felt the same way as Harry, he hoped that he could befriend them. Before he came to Hogwarts, he saw friendship as a burden, something that would held him back, but after meeting Harry, his views changed. He meant wat he had said to Harry two days ago, He would never wish his friendship with him away. The fact that Harry offered to help him train only enforced that, he was very grateful. And he hoped that he could have the same with the two women he had met only hours ago. _We will see what the next week brings, I suppose.. _He thought, hopeful. With a big sigh he grabbed his diary and decided to write his day down.

**A/N: So, our four protagonists are finally in one place! Let the main story begin! First of all, I want to apologize for the long wait. I was very busy with the exams closing in and such. And to be honest, both the duel scene and first meeting took me longer than I expected. I wanted to get both right and I am quite content with the first meeting. However, I am not quite happy with the duel, I feel like there are more things I could add but I don't know what exactly. **

**Secondly, I want to thank everyone who left a review! They made me as happy as a child in a candy store! I think I have read each one at least three times, really, thank you! I do want to elaborate a little bit further on some reviews:**

**The first one stated that it was kind of odd that the Imperius was so easily broken by just calling out names. I wont spoil anything, so, you'll have to wait and see, I am afraid.**

**The second and third one are about Yuri. Talking how, in the dark Souls universe, Undead and Hollow don't exactly die, while in the Harry Potter universe, It is impossible to resurrect the death. I want to say that I will delve deeper in the exact rules around this, Yuri's past and such will be talked about later in the story, it will also be revealed how everything works, of course. What I will say is, that I chose not to implement a major thing form the Souls universe. For Dark Souls fans out there, I bet you know that the Undead are immortal, if they die, they return to a bonfire. I chose not the incorporate this in my story because it would make for a very boring and overpowered OC. Also, explaining the whole bonfire thing seemed impossible to anyone who is not familiar with the games. And I already think that it is already complicated enough for anyone not familiar with the Dark Souls universe.**

**The fourth was about the relationship between Yuri and Gabrielle. I will say that I will take things slow, especially with these two. No physical relationship will form between them in the near future, I have everything planned out and I hope it will be believable!**

**Right then, I also do want to point out that I am looking for a beta reader. Like I said in previous chapters, I am not familiar in the fanfiction community and I have no idea how any of this works, but I am looking for someone, I have no idea where to find one though. I mostly reread my own chapters myself but it seemed like I missed a few errors. Like always, thank you for reading, be sure to leave your thoughts in the reviews and have a nice day!**


	7. Chapter 7

It was now Saturday, very early in the morning. Yuri was sitting at his desk, having a conversation with himself like he had every day for the past week, while translating one of his books. The past week had been amazing. He, Harry, Fleur and Gabrielle had sat together whenever they were in the great hall for breakfast, dinner or supper, talking about nothing really. Harry had told the French witches about his adventures in Hogwarts, which had shocked them as much as it had him. The women, on their part, talked even more about Beauxbatons, and more specifically, about France. They told them about all the places one could visit in Paris alone and Yuri honestly thought it sounded amazing. Being Undead, Yuri had traveled a lot before his time in the Asylum. He had traveled through the major part of Lordran for the first 2 years. He had also traveled a bit throughout Britain to fight Voldemort and his forces during the first War against the self-proclaimed Dark Lord. However, Yuri had never taken a moment to enjoy the view, to enjoy the places he had visited. It was dangerous for Undead to lose focus, Lordran is home to many different kinds of dangerous beings and he definitely hadn't time to slack off during the war with Voldemort. The French witches had also told them about their interests and hobbies. Fleur was good in Charms and Transfiguration, while Gabrielle was mostly interested in Astronomy. Harry had told them that he liked Quidditch, of course, and that he liked Defense Against the Dark Arts. He had learned that Harry's birthday was the 31st of July. While Fleur and Gabrielle's birthday were on the 21st of September and the 28th of October respectively.

At first, Yuri kept mostly to himself, listening while the others were talking. He couldn't exactly join in the conversations they had. As Undead, there was no time for hobbies or other things to pass the time because there was no free time. Gabrielle had asked him about his birthday. The only respond he could muster was an awkward chuckle. Undead didn't have birthdays, they technically didn't even have an age. They just existed. His body was probably hundreds of years old, gods know how long ago he had died. However, He knew that he had existed for 19 years already, he had made the calculations during his first week at Hogwarts, but didn't know if that counted as his age. In the middle of the week, with some encouragement from Harry, he finally opened up a bit. He told them things that just came to his mind, things they had talked about. He told them about his skill and interest in pyromancies. He saw the surprised looks on Fleur and Gabrielle's faces when he told them he was a pyromancer, but luckily, they didn't ask questions. He told them a little bit about Quelana, retelling more stories about his first days as a pyromancer.

Friendship was a foreign concept to him. Most of the time, when people were nice to Undead, it was mostly because they needed something, the only exception to this was Quelana. His friendship with Harry had only deepened. They continued their training sessions, With Harry practicing new spells while he gave him pointers on how to control the spell more. Sometimes, the roles were reversed, with Yuri trying to relearn some pyromancies while Harry watched and helped wherever he could. That was the reason why he was translating the books he had. They were written in Latin and contained knowledge about pyromancies, miracles and spells from Soul Magic. He had never really bothered reading them before, as Quelana was there to help him and teach him. But now, he figured he could really use them to learn some new things. He was translating them so Harry could read them. He had 2 books on pyromancies and one book each on miracles and Soul Magic. He also had another, rather thick, book about Undead. A gift from Quelana. He was planning on translating that one too so Harry, and hopefully Fleur and Gabrielle in the future, could read it to learn more about him and his Kind.

Not only had his friendship with Harry deepened this last week, he felt like he had formed a friendship with both French women. It felt like the first week when he had met Harry. It was mostly spent on getting to know each other, with a few jokes in between, of course. They had opened up a bit to both him and Harry about the treatment they got for, well, being themselves. Fleur had said that most men look at her with lust. Their eyes would glaze over and they would act all though, trying to get her attention. The women would act jealous, just because she got all the attention. She also said that she was grateful that both him and Harry weren't influenced by it. He had no idea how Harry was immune to it but he had an idea why he was immune to Fleur's allure. Undead had naturally good mental shields. She had voiced how happy she was that she could talk to someone who wasn't affected. Gabrielle, on the other hand, had a similar experience with prejudices. She explained that Veela age differently. Apparently, a Veela will remain in a child's body until said body decides that they are mature enough to grow up and become a woman. Gabrielle was almost 15 but had explained that it normally doesn't happen before their 16th birthday. So she was stuck in the body of a twelve year old. She told them that her fellow students laughed at her for her size.

Yuri could sympathize with both women. People saw what he was first and foremost. An Undead, a skilled and deadly warrior who doesn't want anything but to kill. Life of an Undead was hard, emotions could get them killed, which is why Yuri kept everything hidden. He had built proverbial walls to keep everything in check, and only Quelana bothered to get to know the man beneath it all. When he had promised Oscar to come to these lands he had thought the same would happen, that he would continue his lonesome campaign, in search to complete whatever his quest was. How wrong he was.

It started with his little rescue of Harry and his friends. He hadn't know who Harry was back then, and his conversations with Miss Johnsen and the Headmaster gave him an idea how people around here treated him and his Kind. To say he had been surprised when he saw Harry at his door to thank him for the rescue was an understatement. The fact that anyone wanted to thank someone like him was a surprise in of itself. No one bothered to thank him, and yet, Harry did. Of course, Harry hadn't known what he was during the first week, so Yuri had prepared himself to lose whatever friendship he had with the young wizard as soon as he found out. He was even more surprised when he had said that he didn't care, that nothing would change. Yuri found himself trusting the young wizard more than he had almost anyone ever before, again, Quelana being the only exception. The second week only enforced this, deepening their friendship in something Yuri didn't even know was possible. Harry seemed genuinely interested when he had told him about his type of spells after their training sessions. Or his interest in his style of life, his travels of Lordran, and so much more, Yuri had told him almost everything he had went through. Of course, there were some things Yuri was reluctant to share. Most importantly, the Asylum, even a fleeting thought of the place sent shivers down his spine and genuinely made him afraid, something that was very rare for Undead. He didn't even know if he wanted to share those memories with anyone, so for now, he was happy to just keep them to himself. In return, Harry opened up too, which Yuri was thankful for. He had told him about his parents death, which had shocked him, of course. No one should've to live without parents. A child needs their parents to help them and to guide them in life. To support them when they need it. Yuri knew that he probably had parents in the past, before he was cursed, before he awoke again as Undead but had no memories of them. On top of that, Harry had told him about the treatment he got from his relatives. Yuri had gotten angry when Harry had told him about his little room under the stairs or how they had punished him whenever he did something wrong in their eyes. Yuri had been angry and wanted to storm over there and burn them to cinders for treating his friend like that. One wouldn't even treat a dog like that, let alone a human child. Harry had calmed him down.

"It is what it is, Yuri. No need to get angry over it." He had started and the sad tone didn't go unnoticed by Yuri. "I have you now, and Fleur and Gabrielle. And, of course, the three chasers." He had continued with a small smile. Yuri had noticed how he had excluded his other two friends, the girl with bushy hair and the red haired boy, he had forgotten their names. He knew why they were avoiding Harry and he still felt guilty about it. If Harry hadn't chosen to hang out with him, their friendship wouldn't have been compromised. He had voiced this once but Harry had quickly shut it down.

"You have no reason to apologize or to feel guilty, Yuri. They jumped to conclusions without even getting to know you." He had started. "I can say that you have been a better friend over these past two weeks than they have been over three years." Yuri had raised an eyebrow at that. Harry had just continued. "I appreciate the help they have given me, but they see my fame first, the Boy-Who-lived. While you, Fleur and Gabrielle see the real me first, Harry, The fourteen year old who wants to be normal for a change." He had finished with sigh.

His friendship with the two French witches was still a bit new but he could definitely say that it felt the same like his friendship with Harry. He trusted them more than he had everyone else. They had been often confused about the stories he had told, probably because of the gaps or lack of information like Harry had told him. They had been confused of his lack of birthday or his lack of hobbies, and yet, they didn't even ask about it once, which he was grateful for. It showed that the respect he held for them both was mutual. In return, they had opened up about their lives, which he found very interesting. He had wanted to tell them his true identity several times over the past week, to just take them somewhere private and spill everything like he had with Harry but he was scared. He was scared that they would be afraid of him and run away. Which was another thing that was entirely new to him. He had faced dragons, wyverns, drakes, demons and other monstrosities, never had he been scared. The whole friendship thing had him confused but the very idea that he could lose both witches just because of what he was, scared him. He didn't want to lose them, he valued their friendship, he liked being around them. They had been open about them being Veela, but like he had told Harry, there is a big difference between Undead and Veela. Veela were shunned by fellow women while men objectified them. He admitted that it was cruel but they weren't carted of to an Asylum to rot, they weren't considered dangerous by the Ministry, they didn't need to be afraid of turning Hollow and harming the ones they care about.

Which was another thing he was kind of scared of. During his travels in Lordran and his participation in the first war against Voldemort, he didn't really gave much thought about himself turning Hollow. He figured he would perish long before the curse could consume him, like so many others of his Undead brethren. He had never had the chance to see the end of the war. He had been carted of to the Asylum because he was deemed too dangerous by the Ministry. He didn't had the chance to see the end of the war in which he had participated in, with full devotion. The same war that had ended two years later with the death of his friend's parents. The thoughts about him becoming Hollow became more real when he was locked up in the Asylum, but even then, it didn't bother him that much. To start with, he was locked up, with no way of escaping. When an Undead turns Hollow, they lose most brain functions, their only aim is to kill and even that aim disappears after an amount of time. So he had figured that his Hollow self could never find a way out of his cell, and even if it did, he hadn't worried about it hurting anyone. The Asylum was located in a place far from any civilization and he didn't have anyone he really cared about, again, except Quelana. But, he had figured out that she could protect herself from a Hollowed Undead. She was far more powerful than him, far more skilled in the art of pyromancies, she was the daughter of the Mother of Pyromancies after all. He had all but welcomed the fact that he would turn Hollow in the Asylum but to his surprise, it never came. After Oscar's rescue he had given the process of Hollowing more thought. What if he turned Hollow before his quest was complete? Were the things people said about him really true? Was he really the Undead's last hope? He had wanted to figure things out as soon as possible but then he had met Harry, Fleur and Gabrielle. Thinking about his friends made him smile like a madman, they didn't know it but he was happier than he had ever been in his entire existence, and they were the reason. He couldn't imagine them being gone from his life, even if he had only knew them from a short amount of time. Of course, he hadn't voiced anything about him being the Chosen Undead to Harry. He would first figure it out for himself, figure out what it truly meant. While his friendship with the three of them made him happy, it also worried him a bit. More specifically, he worried about himself. If he were to turn Hollow now, his Hollowed self would almost certainly target them first.

He stopped writing when he finally realized what he had been doing for these past two weeks. He had unconsciously put Harry, Fleur and Gabrielle in danger. The friendship they shared made them a target for his Hollowed self. He cursed, angry at himself for his selfishness. If he had done what he had planned, they wouldn't have been in any danger. He was a fool to think that he could be anything else than the cursed corpse he was. He was cursing more loudly now, how could he forgot something as important as that?

He thought about ending the friendship he had built between them. _It would be easy. _He reasoned with himself. _Ignore them from now on, to protect them, to keep them safe from yourself. _He sneered at no one in particular. However, he knew that he couldn't do it. Harry had spoken so highly of him and both Fleur and Gabrielle had thanked him more than once for listening to them, for accepting them for who they were, for being there for them. He could never turn his back to them. _I will have to find a way to protect them when the time comes. _He negotiated with himself. He couldn't turn his back on them, so he could as well protect them from what's to come. He was shaken out of his thoughts when he heard a knock on his door. Apparently, he had been lost in his thoughts longer than he realized, it was time for breakfast. He stood up and went to open the door.

"Good morning, Yuri." Harry exclaimed. However, it seemed that Harry sensed his distress because he quickly frowned. "What's wrong."

"Good morning, Harry." He greeted his friend in return. "Nothing's wrong." He lied, not wanting to talk about his concern of Hollowing just yet. If Harry didn't buy the lie, he didn't show it, his frown disappeared. "I think I have made a decision by the way." He started again as soon as Harry had entered his room and had sat down on the couch. Harry raised an eyebrow in question.

"What about?" he asked.

"I decided that I will tell Fleur and Gabrielle everything." He received a smile from him.

"That's good to hear, I am sure everything will be fine." Harry reassured him again. Over the past week Yuri had voiced his concerns more than once.

"I hope it will be." Yuri muttered in response while putting his diary and the book he was translating away.

"Of course it will! When are you going to tell them?"

"I planned on doing it after breakfast." He answered while grabbing the chair and taking a seat across Harry.

"That's good to hear, I am sure everything will be okay, Yuri. You have nothing to worry about." Harry still saw the uncertainness in his eyes. This was one of the few times his friend's cool, calm and collected attitude faltered. He decided to change the subject, to take his friend's mind of what was to come. "So, how far are you with translating those books?"

"The first one on pyromancies is almost complete, however, after that one, I am going to translate the book on Undead first. So you, and hopefully Fleur and Gabrielle can read a bit more about my Kind." He said.

"That is a very good idea, Yuri. I would love to learn more about Undead." He said genuinely. He saw Yuri's stunned expression for a moment. Harry knew that Yuri was still surprised that he showed so much interest in the history and capabilities of Undead but that was because he was genuinely interested in it. He found it fascinating, while wondering while the Ministry of Magic had kept their existence such a secret. He was slightly nervous too as to how their French friends would react to the truth.

"I think it is time for us to go to the Great Hall, breakfast is about to begin." Harry had finally said after they had talked a bit more about Yuri's books.

They made their way towards the Great Hall. Yuri was getting more nervous to closer they got to it. He rested his left hand on the hilt of his sheathed sword. It had become a bit of a habit, whenever he felt angry or nervous, he would grip the hilt, trying to get his emotions back in check. Before they could enter, however, he saw three women coming towards them. As they came closer, he recognized one of them. It was Miss Johnsen, the same one he had talked about after their fight with the Death Eaters. The same one who pieced together what he was. He steeled himself, adopting the indifferent attitude he had used so many times before in the past. He saw Harry glance at him with a questioning glance, probably wondering why he had reacted that way. Before he could say something, two of them spoke up. Their names were Miss Bell and Miss Spinnet, if he remembered correctly.

"Good morning, Harry, Sir." They greeted them with a smile, which he saw Harry return in kind. He gave them a friendly nod. He saw Miss Johnsen looking intently at him before she too greeted Harry and himself. He knew that Harry was friends with them so he decided to be friendly in return.

"Good morning, to you too. Please call me Yuri." He stated politely. He saw Harry giving him another quick glance before returning his attention back to the three ladies standing before them. _He has definitely noticed the change in my demeanor and voice._ He concluded. _I'll explain it to him later._ He heard Miss Bell speaking up, locking eyes with him.

"I wanted to thank you, Yuri. You saved not only my friends from the attack, but you saved my life." He could hear the honesty in her voice and she really sounded genuine. "I wanted to thank you sooner but someone didn't let me." She said while glaring at Miss Johnsen who stood on her right. She sounded genuine so he gave her a smile in return before answering.

"No problem, Miss Bell, you do not need to thank me, I was only doing my duty."

"Call me Katie, please, Miss Bell sounds way to formal." She said with a smile. However, Harry was frowning at Angelina. Both Katie and Alicia saw it too. _He figured it out. _He concluded and decided to step in before both parties would say things they regret. He really didn't want Harry to lose more friends because of him.

"Miss Johnsen, a word in private if you please." He stated politely, getting confused looks from everyone. Harry was about to say something but he silenced him with a shake of his head. "Don't worry, we won't be long." He added. The confused expressions didn't disappear but he saw Harry nod.

He took Angelina a bit further away from the group, away from prying eyes and ears. She seemed nervous, almost afraid even. He sighed softly, relaxing the grip on his hilt a bit more to hopefully bring her more at ease. _I hope Fleur and Gabrielle won't be afraid of me. _He silently begged to whatever deity existed before addressing the woman standing before him, watching him with nervous eyes.

"Look, Miss Johnsen, you know what I am, but I assure you, you do not need to fear me. I know that you don't trust me." He started in a whisper. " But I really mean you no harm. Or anyone else for that matter." He tried again, with a more gentler tone. He saw her relaxing somewhat. _Progress. _He silently huffed. "The only thing I ask of you is to not tell anyone what I am. I would like to keep it hidden for as long as possible." She nodded and relaxed a bit more. He had nothing more to say so he gave her a nod, intending to leave, before her voice stopped him.

"It's not that I don't trust you, Yuri. I was scared when I found out. I had only read a small paragraph about Undead. I read that you were dangerous and just assumed it to be the truth. I have heard Harry's discussion with Ron and Hermione and realized I did the same. I am sorry." She ranted in a whisper. He was surprised, he really didn't expect an apology. " Harry speaks highly of you, Yuri. Harry doesn't make friends quite easily. It took Alicia, Katie and I years to built the trust and friendship we share now. And I have never heard him speak of Ron or Hermione like that before. It made me realize my mistake, I am really sorry." She added. Yuri had expected that even less. His next response was with a smile, a small genuine one.

"You have nothing to apologize for, Miss Johnsen, you were worried about the safety of your friends." He answered, still a bit shaken after her little rant.

"Please, call me Angelina." She started again, her smile back in place. "And I promise I won't say anything to anyone." Yuri gave her a grateful nod before the both of them joined the others again.

Harry threw him a question glance again, while the other two women were doing the same to Angelina.

"Everything is fine, now let's eat." Angelina exclaimed before entering the Great Hall, flanked by Katie and Alicia. They took place in the middle of the Gryffindor table. They had invited both Harry and Yuri to join them but they had declined politely, preferring their spot at the end of the table.

"What was that all about?" Harry had asked.

"She figured my true identity after the fight." He just stated. Harry's eyes went wide.

"What?" He exclaimed in a surprise whisper.

"Yes, apparently, she had read about it before." He started nonchalantly. "To say she was surprised and scared, is an understatement."

"She was scared?" Harry asked bewildered.

"Yes, The Ministry wants to keep us a secret, and if any information about us is leaked, they portray us as Dark Creatures, to incite fear." He answered, he found his Friend's dumbfounded expression only a bit funny. However, it soon changed in one of anger.

"Why do they do that?" He hissed. Yuri shrugged.

"I do not know, we are not exactly liked among the living, Harry." Harry still didn't like how Yuri addressed himself as dead every time they spoke about something like this. In his eyes, Yuri was as much alive as he was.

"So what did Angelina want?" He asked, trying to forget his anger for the Ministry. He couldn't believe they would do something like that, especially after everything the Undead have done in the past.

"I reassured her that I mean no harm towards anyone in this school. I also asked her to keep my identity a secret for now."

"You want to tell the whole school eventually?" Harry asked in disbelief. He wasn't opposed to the idea but he had seen how the Headmaster had treated him.

"I would rather not, Harry, trust me. " He started. "Imagine how parents would react when they found out an Undead is in the same school as their kids, there would be uproar." He continued. "However, I do realize that I can't keep it a secret forever."

He could see Fleur and Gabrielle entering the Great Hall, making their way towards them. Yuri was getting nervous again. Fleur took a seat next to Harry while Gabrielle took a seat next to him, like they had done for the past week.

"Bonjour Yuri, Harry." They both greeted at the same time in their French accent while taking their seats.

"Good Morning!" Harry exclaimed cheerfully.

"Good morning." He greeted them too while giving them both with a small smile. There were already hundreds of scenarios running through his head on how they would react when he told them his true identity.

Not soon after, food appeared on the tables and they started eating. They fell into a comfortable conversation, like they had for the past week. Harry told them about some of the pranks he pulled on Malfoy. Yuri had learned from Harry that Malfoy was a real prat. Insulting anyone who he deemed lesser than himself. While Yuri didn't exactly condone revenge, he had to admit that some of the pranks were pretty funny. After that, Fleur and Gabrielle told them some more about their childhood. Apparently, their house is located close to the sea, in southern France, so they would often take trips there with their parents to relax. The meal went by quickly, a bit too quickly in Yuri's opinion. He already didn't eat much, but now, he didn't have an apatite at all. Before Fleur and Gabrielle could excuse themselves to go back to the Carriage, Yuri spoke up.

"There is something that I need to tell you, something very important." He started, his voice even, looking between Fleur and Gabrielle. They both looked at him with surprise.

"What is wrong Yuri?" Gabrielle asked him with a bit of concern in her voice while putting her hand on his shoulder. Fleur too was watching him with concern.

"I think it is best if we go somewhere more private, it is to crowded here, I know a nice place by the Black Lake." He started again. "So I would like to ask you to please follow me so I can tell you?" He asked and he was ashamed that he couldn't keep the slight waver out of his voice. He saw both Fleur and Gabrielle nod in confirmation while Harry gave him a supportive smile. They stood up and made their way out of the Great Hall, towards the spot between the Forbidden Forest and the Black Lake. The same spot he and Harry used to train. He kept walking ahead of the three of them, silently pondering on how he would approach it. _By the gods, what am I doing?_ He asked himself. _I have already thrown Harry in a world full of even more danger and now I am about to do the same to Fleur and Gabrielle? I have been selfish. _He sighed, loudly, his left hand gripping the hilt of his sword tightly.

XXX

Gabrielle had no idea what was going on when they made their way outside to follow Yuri. The past week had been fantastic. Both she and her sister were so happy that they had met and befriend Harry and Yuri. Both men didn't judge her by her size, they recognized that she was in fact older than 12, even if her body wasn't. Her sister was happy too, she had never seen Fleur like that, probably happy to talk to two men who weren't trying to get in her pants. The talks they had shared throughout the week had created a friendship between the four of them. Harry had been nothing but kind towards both of them. Sharing how he hated the fame that surrounded him for something he couldn't even remember. He had talked a bit about his relatives but not in great detail, she had figured it was kind of a sore topic for him and hadn't pushed him further. However, the man they were now following was still somewhat of a riddle to her. She knew that there were things he wasn't telling. The big gaps in the stories he had told were a big giveaway. She still found the reaction to her question about his birthday weird. She had learned that Yuri was calm and collected, however, his voice when he had told them he needed to tell them something sounded so foreign to her. It sounded like he was carrying a big burden on his shoulder. She was concerned about him and if Fleur's concerned looks were anything to go by, she was too. She noticed that Harry didn't seem bother at all about Yuri's whole change of demeanor. So she decided to ask him about what was going on.

"What is wrong, Harry? What's wrong with Yuri?" She asked while looking at him, hoping he could provide some form of an answer. She could see her sister focusing her attention on him too. He let out a big sigh before responding.

"There is nothing wrong with him, Gabrielle, don't worry." He started with reassuring her. "But, He is about to tell you two something, something very important to him." He continued. "I obviously already know about it but it isn't my place to tell you. The only thing I ask from the both of you is to hear him out." He finished and she noticed that he was almost pleading.

"Of course we'll hear him out, he's our friend." She heard her sister answer. She saw Harry smile at that.

"I am glad to hear that." Harry answered before they arrived in a clearing. She could see the Black lake on her right and the edge of the Forbidden Forest to her right. There were trees scattered around the clearing, shielding them from any prying eyes. Yuri turned around, inviting them to sit down, overlooking the lake. The three of them sat down, while Yuri paced around in front of them, she had never seen him nervous before.

"Thank you for coming here." He started, he seemed lost for words, another thing that was so unlike Yuri. "I invited you here to tell you the truth. The past week has been amazing." It looked like he was rambling a bit. "I wanted to tell the truth because I value your friendship greatly." She could hear the honesty in his voice. "I only have the three of you." She heard him murmur. "I want to tell you because you deserve to know the truth, you deserve to know with whom you've spent the previous week with." She was confused even more than she already was. What did he mean by that? She could see that her sister was as confused as her, while Harry watched, she could see the concern now all across his face. She saw Yuri stop pacing. He looked her right in the eye. Only now could she see that he wasn't only nervous, she could see the fear in his eyes. He quickly looked away, making brief eye contact with his sister, she had no doubt that she too could see the fear in his eyes. He spoke, his voice barely above a whisper, fear clear in his voice.

"I am Undead." He had closed his eyes, probably afraid to see their reactions, Harry too was watching them intently. She bet that her eyes almost popped out of their sockets and she could hear her sister silently gasp in surprise.

She knew what Undead were, she had read a bit about them in her previous year and she was sure her sister had heard about them too. She knew that not a lot was known about them. The Ministry labeled them as very unpredictable and dangerous but they were mostly a mystery. She frowned, Yuri wasn't dangerous, he had been nothing but friendly towards the both of them. Before either she or Fleur could answer, Yuri spoke up again. He had opened his eyes again, looking between the two of them.

"I wanted to tell you because you deserve the truth." He started, his voice unlike she had ever heard before. It was calm and collected, a bit too collected. It sounded rather cold and emotionless. "I understand if you wanted nothing to do with me anymore." That almost sounded bitter, like he knew how this would end. She remembered his words: "I only have the three of you." They were the only ones he was close too, except for his mentor he had told briefly about. To her, it didn't make a difference. In her eyes, he was still Yuri, the man she had got to know over the past week. Before she could voice this, her sister spoke up.

"It doesn't make a difference to me, Yuri, and I am sure it doesn't bother Gabrielle either." Fleur said, she gave Yuri a smile in confirmation. She could see him relax a bit, a ghost of a smile on his lips.

"Indeed, it doesn't matter to me either, Yuri, you are still our friend, nothing will change that. But thank you for sharing this with us." She added, this time it was her sister that nodded in confirmation, indicating that she felt the same. She could see Harry smiling.

"I… Thank you, that means a lot to me." He said honestly. She gave him a reassuring smile in return. She was happy that he had told them. It looked like a giant weight was lifted of his shoulders.

**A/N: so Yuri finally told Fleur and Gabrielle his true identity! I am sorry I took so long again, but exams are driving me crazy! I am not one to beg for reviews but I would really like some feedback so please leave your thoughts! Thank you and have a good day!**


	8. Chapter 8

Fleur woke up earlier than normal. In just a couple of days, the Goblet of Fire would be ignited to choose the Champions to compete in the Tournament. To say she was nervous, was a bit of an understatement. She had decided to compete to show her fellow students that she was a talented witch, and not just the pretty Veela most of the people saw her as.

She stood up and decided to do her morning routine. As she was taking a shower she let her mind wander as the warm water hit her skin. The past month was simply amazing. After Yuri had told them that he was Undead, she could see him change, albeit only a little. He became much more comfortable around both her and her sister. Over the past month, he had not only told his adventures in Lordran but he had also explained the history of Undead to them. And if she were completely honest, she didn't like it one bit. She could see that both Gabrielle and Harry didn't like it either.

In the beginning she had a bit of trouble wrapping her head around it all. To think that wizarding humans descended from someone who was worshipped as a god centuries ago. She wondered what part Veela played in this, something she had asked him, but sadly, he didn't know an answer to that. He had continued to tell them about the past of his Kind, the Undead. They were once human but cursed to live a horrible life, even after death. She had seen that the topic wasn't exactly pleasant for him to talk about, but she had wanted to know more. She didn't have any friends, so she would do anything in her power to help Yuri and Harry wherever she could. She remembered that conversation as it was yesterday:

He had just explained how Gwyn had cursed those who dared oppose him, showing them the small burning circle in his neck, which he had called the Darksign. The three of them were sitting on the bank of the Black lake while Yuri was pacing in front of them.

"It is the mark of the Undead, it is not lethal, it just shows that I am cursed." He had explained. " Once a cursed person dies, their souls leave their body, only to be replaced by a Dark Soul. This Soul allows them to awake as an Undead with no memories of their previous lives." He had continued. He didn't make eye contact with any of them, instead he had chosen to keep his gaze fixated on the ground. However, she could faintly hear the pain it held, it was clear that he didn't like talking about his origin. She had no idea why though and her curiosity got the better of her.

"So you don't remember who you were before? And does one become Undead as soon as they receive the Darksign or after they awake for a second time?" She had asked. She had seen the glare her sister had given her as if she were saying 'Can't you see he doesn't like talking about it?' Yuri looked up, making eye contact with her.

"I don't remember anything. I saw 'Yuri' written on the grave I clawed out of so I chose that as my name. I don't know where I lived, how I lived, how old I was or how I died." His voice had been guarded, yet it had been clear to her that he was very uncomfortable talking about it. However, he had continued continued. "we only become Undead after we have died and received a Dark Soul, before that, we are human, albeit cursed."

"I see, sorry, you probably don't like talking about it." She had apologized. It was not polite of her to ask rather personal questions like that. Yuri had given her a small smile in comfort.

"You don't have to apologize, Fleur. You are merely curious, which, believe it or not, I appreciate. Not a lot of people are willing to even talk to us, let alone learn our history. You don't know how grateful I am to the three of you." He had said sincerely while shifting his gaze to Gabrielle and then to Harry, giving them a small smile too.

To awake in a world you don't know, or at least don't remember, with no one to support or help you and with powers you probably don't even understand. Fleur couldn't even try to comprehend how Yuri made it through it all. She had thought it couldn't get worse than that, how wrong she was. After her questions, Yuri had started telling about the fate of the Witches of Izalith, Gwyn's departure and of course the rebellion and the awful role the Undead played in it. He had told that it happened a very long time ago. Again, Yuri had seen uncomfortable talking about it, even ashamed.

After a little bit of silence, he had continued again. The horrors continued. She had quickly looked at her sister as Yuri told them about all the wars they had to wage, the pain in his voice clear as day. She had seen the beginnings of tears starting to form in her sister's eyes while Harry was looking sadly at the ground, probably hearing the story for a second time. As he told how the Undead were used as a weapon and treated worse than she had ever heard before, she had started to tear up a little too, although no tears actually fell. As a Veela she was no stranger to name calling from other women or even to be objectified by men. It had been clear to her that Yuri had gotten the same treatment. He had been, and still was, regarded as a weapon, a tool to be used by the living.

This was the first thing she didn't like about the history of the Undead. She knew how much it hurt to be treated as a lesser being, to be regarded as something instead of someone. The story hadn't gotten better though.

Yuri had fallen silent after that for a bit, like searching for his words to continue his story. He hadn't been uncomfortable when he told them about the wars, no, he sounded hurt more than anything. Hurt that the majority of his race were wiped out in wars that weren't even theirs to begin with. Hurt, he had probably never shared with anyone and had kept to himself for far too long. She, Harry and Gabrielle had looked at each other, silently asking what to do to help their friend. Before they could come up with something to comfort their friend, he had continued.

Fleur would never forget the range of emotions in his voice and in his eyes as he told them about the Undead asylum. Yuri had averted his gaze once more to the ground to avoid looking them in the eye. She had quickly glanced aside and according to their faces, both Harry and Fleur picked on his change of demeanor too. His voice had been strained, like he had difficulties speaking about what the Undead asylum was meant to do. His voice had been laced with hurt and pain, he hadn't told them what had transpired in the asylum but it was probably nothing pleasant if his voice was anything to go by. And what shocked her the most, his eyes had been full of fear.

She had heard a lot of his stories during the first week they met. Yuri was probably one of the most fearless men she knew. He hadn't elaborated a lot on the Asylum. He had only mentioned how Undead would turn Hollow in that place. But Fleur knew that whatever the Undead Asylum was, it had scared and mentally scarred Yuri a great deal.

She had thought it couldn't get much worse than a place designed to break one's spirit to reduce you to nothing but a husk. She was again proven wrong when Gabrielle had silently asked what a Hollow exactly was. She had seen Harry wincing, indicating that he didn't like the topic either. What he had said next, and especially the tone in which he said it, had surprised her even more than she already had been.

"A Hollow was once an Undead who lost his Humanity, meaning they have lost the ability to feel or to think, the only thing a Hollow knows is to kill. They are what's left when an Undead is broken in both body and mind." He had explained. Fleur didn't know what to say. Would Yuri one day turn into one of these Hollows? "We are cursed, we live while we are technically dead. The Dark Soul within us keeps us alive. This Soul is normally not intended for long usages, giving Undead a very variable lifespan. Most of the time, said lifespan is rather short." He had looked away again, trying to recollect his thoughts.

"There are countless of ways for an Undead to turn Hollow, to many to name in fact. Physical harm, certain spells, emotional state, you name it.." He had paused again. He had sighed heavily before continuing again. "There is no way to cure Hollowing, every Undead will one day turn Hollow. There is no cure so once and Undead turns Hollow, there is no turning back." He had finished, the silence hung in the air. Fleur had been stunned into silence, especially with the tone he had used to explain all that. There was no bitterness or anger, no hurt or pain, only acceptance. Like he had already given up the fight. She had glanced sideways to see a sadness cross Harry's features while Gabrielle was frowning. Her sister had been the first to break the silence.

"Is there really no way to prevent it? To reverse the effects or at least prolong your life?" Gabrielle had asked in disbelief. Fleur had heard the hopefulness in her sister's voice, something that she felt too. Hearing Yuri speak about his own dead so casually, so careless like it was the most normal thing in the world had been disheartening. He had sounded like he had stopped caring altogether. They had only know each other for a rather small amount of time but she didn't want Yuri, one of her only friends to die. The looks both Harry and Gabrielle had on their face that day had told her that they felt exactly the same. Yuri had seem rather hesitant to answer her.

"No, there is no way to prevent or reverse the Hollowing process, it is the fate of every Undead, Gabrielle." He had said with a sigh. Fleur had seen that Yuri really wanted to change the topic but she was having none of it. She and her sister had shared a quick look before she spoke up.

"How long?" Yuri had looked at her with a questioning look. "How long do you think you have left to live, Yuri." She had asked again, staring him right in the eyes. She had seen his confusion give way to surprise, only for it to disappear when Yuri had placed his emotionless mask firmly back in place.

"I have no idea how long I will be able to fight of the Curse, Fleur. It could be several months, a couple of years or even a few decades. There are simply to many unpredictable things that could shorten or lengthen my lifespan." A small smile had formed on his lips before he had continued, his voice barely above a whisper. "The life of an Undead is a lonely one, I didn't expect to make friends when I came here and somehow I did. You don't know how happy I am to have you three. I will help you until the day I succumb to the Curse." He had said, although it sounded more like a vow or a promise. Fleur admitted that her heart had broken a little at his soft voice, confirming that he had no one besides herself, Harry and Gabrielle.

This was the second reason why she, and if she were to guess, Harry and Gabrielle too, didn't like what Yuri had told them. The problem wasn't that Yuri was Undead, she couldn't care less about that. He had proven that the few things she had read about Undead were false in less than a week. It was the fact that he was looked at like a lesser being, even more so than herself. 19 years ago, he had woken up, with no memory of who he once was, with powers and abilities foreign to him. Only to be thrown in, according to the stories he had told, one of the most dangerous places in the world with little to no help. After 2 years of fighting the horrors of Lordran he was thrown in a war, used as nothing more than a weapon, seen as an expendable tool. Only to be thrown into the Asylum because the British Ministry deemed him too dangerous before he could see the end of said war, waiting for the inevitable day he would turn Hollow that never came.

Both she and her sister weren't strangers to be treated as lesser beings. In Britain more so than In France. It was no secret that the British Ministry of Magic had a secret operation going against all magical creatures. The situation was a bit better in France, there were several Veela Coven, protected by the ministry so Veela could live in peace. That didn't mean that the average wizard or witch treated them any different. She also knew that Harry was treated as a celebrity, something he absolutely hated. But, over the past month, she had seen how the teachers would react to Yuri's presence. Some of the teachers pretended he wasn't even there, while most of them seemed to be on edge around him, as if he would attack at any moment. She had even seen her headmistress look at him with pure hatred in her eyes, something she had never seen Madame Maxime do.

She didn't like that Yuri had spoken about his inevitable death like it was the most normal thing either. It was clear that there were a lot of things that bothered the young man, things he was clearly not keen on talking about. The only thing they could do was be there for him, hopefully he would talk to at least one of them once he felt ready.

She brushed the last knots out of her long silvery hair, finally ready to start the day. It was the 28th of October, Gabrielle's 15th birthday. They would probably to the same like they did for her birthday. They would go to the Great Hall to have breakfast before going to their little spot between the Forbidden Forest and the Dark Lake to give presents. For her 17th birthday she had gotten a beautiful blue dress with silver linings from her parents, with matching earrings from Gabrielle. Harry had given her a book on Charms and Yuri had given her a wand holster, made out of dragon leather. The three of them had also asked to house elves to make her a cake. Looking back at it made her smile. It had been simple and small, but it was one of the best birthdays she ever had. For the first time she could celebrate her birthday with someone besides Gabriele and her parents. Not that she didn't love her sister or her parents, they were the most important people in her live, but it felt nice to finally have friends.

She had bought a watch for her little sister. The frame was silver colored while the hands and the numbers were gold. Harry had brought her a book on astronomy, including a miniature version of the solar system. Yuri had gotten her a wand holster too but he had said that he would also give her a telescope. Apparently he had found it during his travels in Lordran. Her parents had bought her a dress too because of the ball that would be held after the first task, something she was not really looking forward too. She didn't like the idea of a complete stranger ogling her the entire evening. But those worries could wait for a while longer, today was time to celebrate. She mentally went over her little list in her head to make sure they had everything to make her sister's birthday the best one she ever had. Like they had done for her. _The only thing we need is the cake, but Yuri and Harry would take care of that so everything is in order. _She reminded herself. It was time to wake up her sister.

She hoped that her sister would like their little party, even if it was almost identical to hers. She knew that Gabrielle too had no one to really celebrate her birthday with, or any other holiday for that matter. Her sister was the most precious person in her life and she would do anything to make her happy.

**A/N: I would like to start with an apology. I know it has been a long time since I've updated and I am sorry. Life kind of got in the way, but everything is back on track again! Second of all, I want to thank everyone who took time to read the story. I want to thank everyone who reviewed, favorited and/or followed the story. Seriously, I can't thank you enough. This story started in my head. As you may know, I am a gamer, have been since I was 4 years old. The Dark Souls saga (anything from Fromsoftware to be honest) is my favorite game franchise of all time. **

**One day, I watched the Harry Potter movies. I had never watched them before but they were weekly on television so I gave them a shot and I immediately fell in love with it, especially with the universe and all the possibilities it could bring. In the meantime, I was getting platinum trophy on Dark Souls 1 on my ps4. And one day I thought: what would happen if these two amazing universes would meet and blend together, and that is how my story came to be. And yes, that means that I've never read the Harry Potter books, I am basing everything on the movies (which I am watching for the second time by the way). I hope I can get around reading them, one day, hopefully in English.**

**Which takes me to my next point. I am not a native English speaker. I am Belgian, my mother tongue is Dutch and I know there are a lot of mistakes in my story, especially in grammar and punctuation. I actually underestimated how much time it would take to type a chapter. The main draft takes place in my head, and then I type it down, which usually doesn't take that long. However, I think I reread every chapter like at least 3 times, and some mistakes still make it through, for that I apologize. **

**Well, I will end my little rant with that, does anyone ever read the author notes anyway? Nevertheless, this was a filler chapter, I promise that the story will pick up pace from the next chapter onwards. I have put everything in place that I wanted. My OC is properly introduced (or at least I hope he is) and I feel like their friendship is solidified. Please, let me know what you think so far, I really like feedback.**

**Again, thank you all for everything. Have a great day! **


	9. Chapter 9

Yesterday evening, Dumbledore had announced that the Goblet of Fire had been ignited, allowing the students to enter the tournament. He had emphasized that only students older than 17 were allowed to participate, any student who was younger would not be able to make it past the age line he had personally drawn around the Goblet. He had also explained that while the Ministry had made the Tournament less dangerous than previous editions, it was still challenging. Participants had to be 100 percent sure they were willing to participate for once the Goblet chooses the Champion for a school, there is no turning back.

After their supper yesterday evening, they had accompanied Fleur to put her name in the Goblet. Yuri had questioned why someone would possible want to enter a Tournament like that. Voicing his concern loud and clear. Harry had briefly wondered the same. In the past month he had come to know both Fleur and Gabrielle pretty well and Fleur wasn't someone who would pursue fame, and from his understanding, her family was far from poor so she obviously wouldn't do it for the money either. He had kept this to himself of course. Yes, he was very much concerned about his friend, this Tournament was no joke. The previous editions had been very dangerous with plenty of deaths, which was of course the reason why it was cancelled all those years ago. But, if she wanted to participate, he would support her no matter what. Yuri however, hadn't been very keen on her entering and had asked her exactly why she did, again, his concern quite clear in his voice.

That was something Harry had noticed a lot over the past month about Yuri. It was no secret among Harry and his two French friends that Yuri was a closed of person. His so called 'emotionless mask' as Gabrielle had dubbed it, was pretty much in place for most of the time and it was something they tried to get rid of, to show him it was okay to show emotions. The three of them had noticed that his mask would falter from time to time, especially when he had explained his entire situation to Fleur and Gabrielle. Harry still didn't know how to feel about that, the explanation he had given then was a bit more detailed then the one he had gotten at the start of the year. It was still pretty vague though. Harry knew one thing for sure: The fear he had seen in the young man's eyes was clear as day and it disturbed Harry a great deal. Also the fact that he talked about his own death was rather off putting. Harry knew how hard it could be to be put in life threatening situations, but Yuri had sounded like he stopped caring all together. This was even more disturbing to him. Something that the three of them did notice over the past month was that Yuri was highly protective to the three of them. Something that he personally didn't mind, and which was also the reason why he had asked Fleur why she would enter the Tournament.

Fleur had thanked him for his concern and explained to him that she wanted to show not only the her fellow students but to the rest of the world that Veela were more than pretty faces. To prove that Veela could be intelligent witches too. Yuri's face had looked like a deer that was caught in the headlights of a car for a couple of seconds. Probably surprised that his concern had filtered through for Fleur to hear. Surprised that his 'mask', that he had probably worked on for the past 19 years, had faltered. After he had collected himself again though, he had nodded his understanding and offered her his help whenever she needed it. The four of them had been studying together for the past month. Fleur and Gabrielle had joined their little duel club to test their own skill and offered to help both him and Yuri wherever they needed. Of course both he and Yuri had returned the gesture. However, Harry concluded that Yuri knew how dangerous these tournaments could get which was probably the reason why he offered her again for help. Still not quite managing to keep his concern under control.

Granted, Harry himself wasn't exactly good with emotions either, he knew that. But he would never try to bury his emotions whenever he was with friends or family. In the past three years he had opened up a little bit to both Ron and Hermione, when they were still his friends, that is. To be completely honest with himself, Harry didn't really knew what they were. He had only seen them a few times this past month, offering them only a polite greeting and a little bit of small talk at best. He still hadn't forgotten how they had treated Yuri. His friendship with Fleur, Gabrielle and Yuri felt a lot different than what he had shared with Ron and Hermione. It felt a lot stronger, somehow, he couldn't really explain it. It felt somehow more mature, more real. It felt like he had known them for years. Harry had told them a bit about his parents and the Dursleys. He had recalled what had happened on that faithful night. He had also told about his treatment, or lack thereof, from the Dursleys. He had told them about the cupboard under the stairs and the various chores he had to do. He hadn't uttered a word about the physical repercussions whenever he did something wrong though. His three friends had ben furious about it. He had told them they shouldn't dwell on it, after all, it is in the past.

He was now sitting in the Great Hall with Yuri seated across from him, waiting for Gabrielle and Fleur to arrive. His day had been mostly uneventful. It was a Monday so he had lessons to attend, the same went for Fleur and Gabrielle. Yuri was talking about the things he had occupied himself with today. Apparently he had started trying to learn pyromancies that would help him in certain situations. Self-buffing pyromancies, he had called it. Harry listened to him explaining what some of these could do until Fleur and Gabrielle arrived. Both French witches greeted them cheerfully and took their respective places, waiting for supper to be served.

A little bit later, when every student had entered the hall, supper was served. They talked about the upcoming Tournament. It was clear to Harry, however, that there was something bothering Fleur. She had barely touched her food at all and was just picking away at it with her fork.

"Is something wrong Fleur?" He asked between bites. She startled a bit by his question but looked at him anyway.

"Non, Harry, everything is fine, just a bit nervous I guess." She said in a small voice. He saw Gabrielle open her mouth to say something but he beat her too it.

"I am sure you will be chosen, Fleur, don't worry. You are smart, brave and talented, I am sure the Goblet will see that too." He reassured her while giving her a smile and giving her hand a small squeeze. He could've sworn that he saw her blush at his praise but it was probably just the light playing tricks with his eyes.

"Thank you, Harry." Her face broke out in a smile. He loved seeing her smile, especially if he was the one who caused it. He couldn't help himself and got lost in her blue eyes. After they both realized his hand was still on hers they both retracted it and tore their gaze away from each other to focus back on their food. This time he saw her blush but he was sure he wasn't any better off. He saw Gabrielle looking at them weirdly before continuing with her food herself.

Harry knew what was happening however, he had started noticing it a week back. He was starting to get attracted to Fleur. She had a very pretty face and he thought he could drown in her blue eyes. However, she was still his friend and he really tried his best not to stare. He knew how she was treated by almost every single other male and he had vowed long ago he would not lower himself to their level. But that wasn't the only reason why Harry felt the way he felt. Like he had mentioned, she was smart and talented, always offered a listening ear to not only himself but to Yuri too and she was kind and caring. He knew that nothing could come of it. She was way out of his league and she deserved someone better than him. Someone who won't put her in danger by simply being with him. Hell, she was technically already in danger by just being friends with him. No, he would bury this until it would pass.

After the little internal struggle with his thoughts and feelings he noticed how quit there little group had become. The silence wasn't entirely uncomfortable but it was rare, normally they always had something to talk about. Harry dared to quickly look and saw that Gabrielle was still eyeing him with a look he couldn't quite figure out. She would sometimes shift her gaze towards her sister. Harry gave Yuri a quick look and nearly burst into laughter. It was written all across his face that his Undead friend had no clue why everyone had gone so quit. Harry had no idea what to say to get conversation starting again. Luckily, Yuri apparently did.

"Harry is completely right, Fleur. Do not underestimate yourself. You are a talented and smart witch." He had started, probably taking Fleur's silence as a sign that she didn't quite believed what Harry had said. Again, this amused Harry greatly. It would seem that Yuri had no clue what had just transpired.

"Thank you, Yuri." She answered sincerely.

"Besides, you kicked my butt during all our duels we've had so far. Remind me to get my revenge for that." Yuri added teasingly. It seemed to do the trick to break the silence as Fleur started chuckling. The rest of supper was spent in pleasant conversation until Dumbledore asked everyone attentions.

"It is time to announce the Champions of the Tri-wizard Tournament." He announced. It was only now that Harry noticed the Goblet standing beside the Headmaster. The flames of the Goblet turned blue before producing a piece of parchment. Dumbledore snatched it out of the air and announced the first Champion.

"The Champion of Durmstrang is….. Viktor Krum!" Krum stood and made his way to a room in the back, followed by applause of his fellow students.

"The Champion of Beauxbatons is…. Fleur Delacour!" He announced next after he caught the second piece of parchment. Fleur smiled and stood up while Harry and their other 2 friends applauded her with smiles of themselves. Harry saw her go into the same room where Krum went.

"The Champion of Hogwarts is….. Cedric Diggory!" The Headmaster announced the final champion. The Hufflepuff table exploded into cheers and applause as he made his way to the room.

Dumbledore was going to say something when the Goblet exploded in blue flames once more, ejecting another piece of parchment. The Headmaster confusedly snatched it out of the air and read the name out loud.

"Harry Potter." Harry paled when he heard his name while all the other students started murmuring. This had to be a mistake right? He didn't even come near the Goblet. Well, except that one time when he accompanied Fleur. But there were plenty of witnesses that should confirm he didn't put his name in it.

"Harry Potter!" He really didn't want to go. He wanted a quit year for once for Merlin's sake. He saw Yuri whispering something to Gabrielle who nodded as a response.

"It's okay, Harry, let's see what's up." Yuri offered. Harry mutely nodded and stood up, making his way to Dumbledore. He made his way to the room, he could faintly hear Dumbledore and Yuri talking, he had no idea about what though.

XXX

Fleur looked around as she entered the room. She saw Krum standing at the fireplace, he briefly looked up to give her a nod and looked back down before she could return the gesture. She decided to sit on one of the couches in the room, waiting until the third Champion had been chosen. She didn't have to wait for long though as a young man entered. If she recalled correctly, his name was Cedric Diggory. She figured that he was probably the Hogwarts Champion. He gave her a polite smile and greeting which she returned as he took place on the couch on the opposite side of the room. She looked up when she heard the door open again.

"Lady and Gentlemen, may I present to you, our Fourth Champion!" A tall blond haired man announced. She didn't remember his name but he was the one who commentated on the Quidditch World Championship. She quickly took note of Harry's face. He looked panicky and confused. Over the month she had gotten rather experienced in reading her male friends, she could see the slight fear that covered his features.

"This has to be a mistake, monsieur Bagman!" She heard Madame Maxime say. She hadn't noticed that a lot of other people were filtering into the room, including the two headmasters and her own headmistress, three Hogwarts teachers she didn't know the name of, and surprisingly, Yuri.

"No, I assure you, Madame Maxime, there was no mistake. His name came out of the Goblet!" before anyone could say anything else, Dumbledore made his way to Harry, wo was now standing next to Yuri. Dumbledore grabbed Harry's shoulders tightly and asked the question that the majority of the room wanted to ask too.

"Did you put your name in the Goblet, Harry?"

"No, sir, I did not."

"Did you ask an older student to put your name in?" Fleur couldn't believe her ears. It sounded like the Headmaster didn't believe Harry at all.

"No, sir!" Harry said once again.

"He is lying!" Karkaroff growled out. Dumbledore ignored him.

"Are you telling the truth, Harry?" She heard the Headmaster ask. She saw him looking Harry right in his green eyes.

"Yes, Headmaster." Came Harry's quite response. That seemed to ease the Headmaster as he released his grip on Harry.

"Do you allow your students to lie to you like this, Albus?"

"Mr. Karkaroff…" She heard Yuri growl out, giving the Durmstrang Headmaster a withering glare.

"Headmaster, Potter has habit of breaking the rules whenever he sees fit. Arrogant just like his father." Fleur took an instant dislike to the Hogwarts potions teacher.

"That's enough Severus." Dumbledore warned him. "I don't believe Harry put his name in the Goblet but I am afraid he has to participate due to the contract."

Fleur could see that both her Headmistress and the Durmstrang headmaster were not pleased with this at all. Before any of them could voice their objections, Yuri spoke up.

"Sir Dumbledore, You can't be serious about this. The Tournament is way to dangerous for Harry to participate."

"I am afraid he has no choice, Yuri. The Goblet equals as a binding magical contract. He has to participate." Dumbledore said somewhat somberly.

"I will not allow him to participate." He shot back. Harry mouthed his thanks to him. To anyone in the room, Yuri was unreadable. His famous mask firmly in place but to both her and Harry, he was rather easy to read. His concern for his two friends was clearly there.

"Never thought I would agree with a corpse but he is right." Madame Maxime said, narrowing her eyes at Yuri who seemed unfazed by her insult.

"Seconded, The boy cannot participate, it would give Hogwarts an unfair advantage." The Durmstrang headmaster butted in, eying Yuri carefully. Her Undead friend gripped the hilt of his sword tighter.

"The tournament has taken lives before, I will not let an unwilling participant risk his live." Yuri turned to Dumbledore again, hoping that the Headmaster would see reason.

"I bet that Harry isn't as unwilling as you think, Yuri." Snape spit out his name like it was venom. "Who says he didn't ask you to put his name in? I am sure the Age Line doesn't work on someone like you." He continued with a sneer. Yuri turned to the potions teacher, eyes narrowing dangerously.

"I would never willingly put one of my friends in danger." He answered him, not bothering to acknowledge his presence any longer, he tried to reason with the Headmaster one more time. Before he could address him however, her Headmistress spoke up once more, she had never seen Madame Maxime looking at someone like that. She looked like she would kill Yuri on the spot.

"Anyone who associates themselves with you is already in danger." Yuri clenched his jaw at that, it looked like that insult had bothered him. Fleur had no idea why she was so hostile to Yuri. "Albus, why is this thing even here? I am sure you know Undead aren't anything but murderers." The other two champions gasped at that, apparently they hadn't figured out what Yuri was. Fleur began to grow concerned, Yuri was clearly not happy with that.

"Yuri is here to assure the safety of the Tournament and the students, Olympe. He has taken a pledge and everything." Fleur frowned at that, what were they talking about? She had a feeling she wouldn't like the answer.

"Safety? A place with something like him will never be safe, Albus." She retorted back.

"ENOUGH!" Every head snapped at Yuri's direction, surprised by the outburst of the seemingly calm young man. He fixed madame Maxime with another withering glare. Fleur could see that he was very angry, there seemed to be a fire dancing in his brown eyes, his left hand gripping his sword so tightly she was sure his knuckles were turning white under his glove. She couldn't fault her Headmistress for taking a step back under his gaze. He looked terrifying.

"I do not care what you think of me, nor do I care about your petty insults." He had started, the room was completely silent. "I made a pledge to protect this school including it's students. Yes, that does include the students from Durmstrang and Beauxbatons." She heard Karkaroff huff in disbelief, Yuri didn't care, ignoring Maxime and instead addressing Headmaster Dumbledore. " I hereby offer to participate in Harry's place." Harry's eyes widened in disbelief and Fleur was sure hers did too. What was Yuri doing?

"Yuri, I appreciate the concern but I am afraid that simply isn't possible. The Goblet is a binding contract, Harry has to participate himself or he will lose his magic." Dumbledore explained, shocking Harry that he could lose his magic if he didn't participate.

"Do not think me for a fool, Sir Dumbledore." Fleur was surprised at his tone. His polite tone he had used to address Dumbledore was gone, replaced with a more hostile tone. "I am perfectly aware what is capable for someone like me. I am Undead, I am a weapon, I was certainly used like one during the first war against Voldemort." Everyone except Harry gasped as he said the Dark Lord's name. "So I am certain I can be used like one again to make sure Harry doesn't have to participate in this. If that would somehow not be possible, I would offer myself to become Harry's familiar if it meant he would stay out of the Tournament." He said with finality but he made eye contact with Fleur. She could see he silently made the same offer to her, if she wanted too. She was touched by his concern, really. She gave him a nod, hopefully silently answering him that while she was grateful, she would pass on his offer. His small smile indicated that he had received her silent message. Everyone around the room had fallen silent, nobody had expected him to offer something like this.

"I suppose that could be arranged if Harry agrees." Dumbledore said, breaking the silence.

"What do you mean, Headmaster?" Harry asked, a bit confused.

"Yuri is right. He can take your place in the Tournament if you want. There are not exactly rules when it comes to Undead. He could take your place as your familiar or your summoned creature." The Headmaster answered him. Fleur really didn't like the sound of that and seeing Harry's face, he didn't either. It denoted Yuri to something to be used, instead of a living person. She saw Yuri expectedly looking at Harry, waiting for his friend to accept his offer.

"I will not accept his offer, Headmaster." Dumbledore merely nodded as Harry turned to his confused friend. "I Appreciate the offer, Yuri. I really do but I don't want to put others in danger." He explained. Yuri's face went from confusion to understand.

"You won't put me in danger, Harry, really. I've faced far worse in Lordran than anything that Tournament can throw at me." Fleur silently watched the exchange between the two friends.

"I know Yuri but I still don't like to put people in danger when I can avoid it, especially of those people are my friends. Besides, I didn't like the fact that it dehumanizes you either." Madame Maxime huffed at that. Fleur was starting to lose her patience with her Headmistress. What was her problem with Yuri?

"There is nothing human about him." She sneered.

"Madame!" Fleur warned her Headmistress. She had enough of her insulting her friend. She had always respected her Headmistress and she appreciated everything she had done to make her life at Beauxbatons better, but this was getting ridiculous. Madame Maxime gave her a disapproving look.

"It is settled then, Harry will participate in the Tournament as the fourth champion!" bagman exclaimed excitedly. Fleur almost forgot he was there.

"C'mon, Mr. Krum, we will not associate with cheaters." Karkaroff said, clearly not happy before leaving the room with Viktor Krum close behind him.

"Your sister and we are going to have a talk about your recent choice of friends, Ms. Delacour." She heard her headmistress say before she too left the room. Fleur made sure the follow her, her tone indicated that she was not happy. She quickly looked at Yuri and harry who were silently talking to each other. Yuri looked up at her, she silently mouthed 'sorry' for her Headmistress behavior. He shook his head, indicating that her apology was not necessary and gave her a friendly smile. She returned his smile and waved her goodbye to both her friends before exiting herself, joining her Headmistress who was already leading Gabrielle out of the Great Hall.

XXX

"I don't want you to think I refused because I didn't appreciate the offer, Yuri. It's just, I would never forgive myself if something happened to you in the Tournament I was supposed to be in." he heard his friend silently say. He was concerned for both Harry and Fleur's safety. This Tournament was dangerous, everyone know that but he also knew that both his friends could take care of themselves. He was just concerned.

"I know, Harry. I made the offer because I am merely concerned." He reassured his friend. "I just want both you and Fleur safe. I've never had any friends before so I feel a, perhaps, unhealthy need to protect you guys." He continued silently. This was the first time he had ever voiced on of his uncertainties about friendship out loud. He had never felt this before, the constant need to protect Harry, Fleur and Gabrielle. The alarm in his head was going into overdrive now that the first two had entered the Tournament. It was telling him to just take their place, if they wanted him to or not. Like he had said, there was nothing the Tournament could throw at him that was worse than Lordran. He had survived far worse encounters. He did now that they didn't need his protection, not really, anyway. The three of them could take perfectly care of themselves, he knew that, but it didn't take the feeling away. "However, I do know that you, Fleur and Gabrielle can take care of yourselves, Harry, I am merely concerned." He heard his friend breath hitch and silently wondered if anyone had ever said to him that they were concerned about him.

"I know, thank you, Yuri." Came Harry's heartfelt reply. Yuri smiled at his friend.

"Now why don't we go back to my room, I am sure Madame Maxime won't allow Fleur and Gabrielle near me anywhere in the future." He offered. He really didn't care that Madame Maxime hated him. He was more concerned about the relationship between the Headmistress and Fleur and Gabrielle. He didn't want to force them to choose between him and their Headmistress. Harry nodded his approval. "Besides, I have no clue what happened at supper earlier, perhaps you could explain?" Yuri offered with a teasing smile, resulting in Harry groaning in embarrassment.

Yuri wasn't really lying, he really had no clue what was going on between Harry and Fleur. But he was rather well trained in reading people, and he had noticed a change in both Harry and Fleurs behaviour towards another. They would stare at each other when the other wasn't looking, fleeting touches, blushes from time to time. He had no idea what had happened between his two friends and silently hoped that nothing was wrong, he figured Harry could explain.

Ever since he had befriended Harry, Fleur and Gabrielle he was determined to learn more about emotions, feelings and everything that came with being human. He was not delusional though, he knew he could never be human again, he was Undead for now until the day he died or succumbed to the Curse but he was eager to learn more.

_You have not yet lost your Humanity. _Oscar's words ringed into his head. It had become a bit of a mantra to Yuri. Even though he knew he could never be human, after meeting his three friends, he was determined to cling to whatever Humanity he had left. He swore by the gods right then and there that he would rather die than turn Hollow and turn on them.

**A/N: The story is finally picking up in pace, Harry has been forced into the Tournament so we can finally begin our road to the First Task. And the building stones of Harry/Fleur are in place. I thought personally it would be a good start, they have been friends for over a month now, so. Leave your thoughts in the reviews if you want, and as always, have a great day!**


	10. Chapter 10

Fleur knew something was happening between her and Harry. She knew what it was though, she just couldn't believe it was happening to her of all people. She was attracted to harry, something that left her with conflicting emotions. Harry is kind and gentle and would do anything for his friends. He is incredibly brave, the fact that he turned down Yuri's offer a few days back only proved that point. He'd rather be in danger himself than risk any of his friend. He is curious and studious, asking to either herself, Gabrielle or Yuri how certain spells worked and what they did. He is modest, she knew he absolutely hated the fame he got. The fact that he was handsome was a good bonus.

She knew there were downsides however. He was three years younger than her. In the magical world, she was considered an adult, while he was still a teenager. A possible relationship between them could be frowned upon by some people. She also knew that there were a lot of girls out there who fancied Harry Potter, both younger and older than him. She reasoned that those girls only saw him for his fame, and not for who he really was. And then there was the fear that she would ruin the friendship they had already build if she dared go further.

And yet, she wanted to try anyways. She had never felt this way about anyone before. Whenever he made her laugh his face exploded in this huge smile, something that made him even more handsome. She could get lost in his green eyes, like endlessly walking in a forest. And whenever he looked at her whenever he thought she wasn't looking, butterflies exploded in her stomach. Yes, she really did want to try to see where things would go but her fear of ruining a perfect friendship was holding her back.

"You seem deep in thought, Fleur. Mind to share?" She heard her sister ask. It was only now that Fleur noticed she had stopped brushing her hair and had been staring at her reflection for the entirety of her musings. Her sister was watching her with a smile that screamed 'I know something you either don't know or are too stubborn to admit'. She was about to answer her, to tell her it was nothing. She wanted to figure things out herself first before Gabrielle got involved. Fleur was sure her sister would endlessly tease her about it. However, before she could voice her answer, Gabrielle had spoken up again. "It wouldn't be a certain wizard we all know that is on your mind, now would it?" In Fleur's opinion, her little sister looked way to smug albeit with a knowing smile. She let out a defeated sigh before responding. She figured she could as well share her thoughts with Gabrielle and hear what she would do.

"Yes, it is." Came her short reply. Gabrielle's smile vanished, sensing the defeated tone she had answered her with. She walked behind Fleur and put both her hands on her shoulders as a sign of comfort.

"Something is troubling you. What's wrong Fleur?"

"I just feel so conflicted, Gabrielle. I have never felt this way for anyone ever before but I don't know what I should do with these feelings." Fleur finally let out her troubled feelings for her sister to hear. Gabrielle responded by griping her shoulders a bit tighter.

"Why do you say that?" She asked confused. Fleur sighed again.

"He is three years younger than me, Gabrielle." Fleur began but continued before her sister could refute it. "And I am sure I am not the only one interested in him in that way." Gabrielle huffed at her second point.

"Why does it matter that he is three years younger than you? Three years isn't that much, Fleur. And yes, your second point is true but he has only eyes for you." Fleur Blushed at that, making Gabrielle chuckle.

"But what if he isn't interested in me like that? What if I end up ruining one of the few friendships I've ever had." She asked in a small voice. This was her biggest fear. Fleur and Gabrielle had known Harry and Yuri for little over a month now but to her, it felt like years. She couldn't bear the thought of losing Harry to something so stupid like a crush.

"I have seen him looking at you when he thought you weren't paying attention, Fleur. I am pretty sure you noticed it too from time to time. And don't even get me started on that little moment you two shared during dinner a few days ago." Fleur smiled as she remembered said dinner. It had been highly embarrassing but actually quite nice too.

"So what am I supposed to do then?"

"Give him signs that you are interested, I am sure he will respond in kind. Although, he is a boy after all, it may take him a while." Gabrielle responded with a slight chuckle. "Just be yourself, Fleur. I guarantee you it will all work out."

"Thank you, Gabrielle. I don't know what I would do without you." She said sincerely while looking her sister right in the eyes by using the mirror in front of her.

"No problem, Fleur. You deserve some happiness and I haven't seen you this happy in forever." Gabrielle answered when suddenly a thought struck her. "Imagine Madame Maxime's reaction when you two finally stop dancing around your feelings." She said with a laugh. Fleur blushed lightly at that but laughed too.

Their Headmistress had talked to the both of them after the Champions had been chosen. To say she was not pleased was an understatement. She had sounded angry but mostly disappointed but neither she nor her sister knew why. They both had no clue why she hated Yuri so much.

"C'mon, let's get breakfast. Yuri and Harry are probably waiting on us." Gabrielle said as she turned around to leave. Fleur let the comb go through her hair a few more times before she followed her sister to meet their two friends.

XXX

Evening came way to quickly in Harry's opinion. He had spent this Sunday like he had every other Saturday and Sunday for the past month. After breakfast the four of them would go to their little spot to do some homework, continuing their duals and most importantly: having fun. While they took their training with the duals seriously, they often made jokes to lighten the mood every now and then. Both he and Fleur had started preparing today, even though they had no idea what the first task would be. Fleur had thought him some hexes and curses to defend himself better while Gabrielle was making her Arithmancy homework. Yuri had wanted to help her with it but said that he didn't know anything about that subject so he just sat beside her, reading his second book on Pyromancy.

Harry had learned a lot from Fleur, spells he would've only learned from his sixth year onwards. He knew that his chance of winning the Tournament were slim and truth be told, he really didn't want to win it anyway. He participated because he had to, he just wanted to make it to the end without anyone getting hurt, especially his friends. That's why he had refused Yuri's offer.

His growing feelings for the silver haired witch hadn't dissipated like he had hoped to. On the contrary, during their training session, she had pressed herself against his back to show him a rather complicated wand movement. It had taken all of his willpower to stay concentrated, it send shivers down his spine just thinking about it. It was undeniable: they were growing closer as the days passed and it gave Harry a little bit of hope. On one hand, he knew that anything more than friendship with the French witch was wishful thinking but he couldn't help but feel she felt the same way. Just the possibility of her feeling the same attraction he did made his stomach do weird things.

He shook himself out of his thoughts as he entered the Gryffindor Common Room, it was fairly quit, a couple of students were studying together in the corner, silently whispering to each other as they worked on their homework. He quickly looked around to see if Hermione or Ron were there. The situation with his former two best friends was still as complicated as ever. It had been some time now since he last spoke to Ron. His Weasley stubbornness was probably the main reason why he didn't speak to Harry. They had a few fights in the past but it had seem that their last disagreement had broken the friendship they once shared.

Hermione was a more complicated matter, however. He had seen her almost every day for the past month, sometimes it seemed like she sought him out. They had talked briefly, mostly small talk, asking how the other was doing and what not. Harry knew she had always been kind of bossy, it was how she showed that she cared but, in his opinion, her treatment of Yuri went to far. He had meant it what he had said during their last fight. He really felt like his friendship with Yuri, and now with the two French witches too, meant a lot more than anything they ever had. However, he didn't want to shut her out either. She was trying to mend their broken friendship so he would do the same and see if they could fix it. Silently, he hoped they could.

When he arrived in his dorm room he immediately spotted a little note sitting on his bed. He frowned at it but picked it up, opened it and read it.

_Harry_

_Meet me at my hut, I have something important to show you. Make sure you take your cloak with you._

_Hagrid_

Harry had no idea what Hagrid wanted to show him but complied none the less. He took his father's cloak out of his trunk and made his way towards Hagrid's hut.

XXX

Gabrielle knew immediately something was wrong when she and her sister were the first to arrive to breakfast. Usually her two male friends were already seated at their usual spot on the table when they arrived but this morning was different. Beside her, Fleur shot her a worried glance.

"Let's just take a seat and wait for them." She offered in a whisper before they took their usual seats at the table.

Breakfast was just served when Harry and Yuri entered the Great Hall. Gabrielle was relieved and smiled at them. A smile that soon went away as she saw the state both her friends were in. Harry looked paler than normal. He even looked a bit scared. Yuri on the other hand, looked concerned and furious at the same time. Although, the latter was more visible. He walked between the tables, his anger radiating of him, it made most students look up in surprise before quickly looking back down. Gabrielle had never been afraid of Yuri. She knew he was a very skilled warrior and pyromancer. She also knew he had taken lives before, a lot of lives to be exact but not once in the month she had known him had she ever been afraid of him. Now, on the other hand, she was afraid, but not of him but rather for him. Whatever had made him this angry was bound to be very unpleasant news. Combined with Harry's pale look only confirmed this even more. She could see that her sister was concerned too, looking between Yuri and Harry as they quickly made their way towards them.

"What's wrong Yuri? What happened?" Gabrielle asked as soon as they took their seats beside them. He didn't answer however, his flame in his Pyromancy Glove was burning furiously, he tighten his hand into a fist to try and conceal it. He didn't even bother to take food. She looked towards Harry for an answer who had only taken a toast and was silently nibbling on it, staring at his Undead friend across from him.

"What's going on Harry?" She heard Fleur asked more forcefully, her voice laced with concern. If the situation wasn't this tense, Gabrielle would've laughed how easily it was for her to hear her sister's feelings for the wizard. It was clear to her that her sister cared for Harry a lot, but those things could wait. She too wanted an answer.

"Last night, Hagrid showed me what the first task will be." He said in a small voice before continuing eating his toast. This shocked both of them. Yuri remained silent and was glaring at the teachers table. Before they could ask what it was, he continued. "We have to face a dragon, Fleur." He answered their question, this shocked them even more. Dragons? They are forcing students to face off against one of the deadliest creatures in existence? What were they thinking? Gabrielle understood now why Yuri was so angry, she very quickly became angry herself. Her sister and one of her best friends were forced to battle a dragon.

"Hagrid only showed me the dragons, he had no idea what they have planned as task though, it could be anything." Harry spoke up again as soon as his toast was finished. "I don't stand a chance against a creature like that." He murmured more to himself than to them. Gabrielle could see fleur getting rather angry now too. She agreed, Harry was underestimating himself way too much. He had defeated a Basilisk at the age of twelve for crying out loud.

"Don't" Yuri growled out, surprising not only Harry but herself and Fleur too. "Don't doubt your own capabilities, Harry. We have trained a lot this past month, I will continue to help you. I will fix this." He bit out. Harry sighed.

"Yuri…" It sounded to Gabrielle like the two friends had had this conversation before they arrived here.

"No, Harry, I will not let you face one of those things. I should've taken your place in this blasted tournament. Gods be damned I should've taken both your places." That last part was aimed at Fleur. "I will fix this Harry, I will talk to the Headmaster."

"You heard what he said a few days ago, I have to participate."

"No you don't, I can substitute for you as your summoned creature remember? I promised you I will help you in whatever way I can, Harry, I plan to stick to my promise."

"I don't want you to risk your life, Yuri. I will figure it out, I'll survive, somehow. I always have." That last part saddened Gabrielle. Now that he mentioned it, he indeed had. It still was a riddle to her how he had survived the various life threatening situations he had been through in the past years.

"You won't have to figure it out. I will ask the Headmaster to take both your places. He shouldn't have agreed to throw you into a battle with a dragon." Harry sighed, Gabrielle concluded that Yuri could be rather stubborn when he wanted to be. Although, she admired the lengths he would go through to protect his friends.

"Yuri, you don't have to take my place, I knew what I signed up for." Her sister began. "I admit, the thought of fighting a dragon isn't exactly a reassuring one but we will get through this, I am sure of it." Gabrielle could see that Yuri wasn't entirely convinced. He was about to retort before Harry spoke up, his voice was gentle but held a finality to it.

"Nothing will happen to me nor to Fleur, Yuri. The Task is in the beginning of December. We still have over a month to prepare, we'll be fine." Yuri sighed but relented.

"Fine…" Gabrielle could still hear the uncertainness and his concern in his voice.

After they finished breakfast, they went to their usual spot. It was Sunday so they didn't have any lessons. While they were walking towards their spot Gabrielle was rather deep in thought. She understood why Yuri was concerned for the safety of both Harry and Fleur, she was concerned herself. And while she admired his willingness to put himself in danger to protect his friends, she couldn't help but feel his concern was bordering on an unhealthy amount of concern. Harry must have senses her internal musings because he started walking beside her.

"What's on your mind Gabrielle?" He simply asked, offering her a way to vent her thoughts.

"Yuri." She answered in a whisper, making sure her sister and Yuri couldn't hear her. Seeing Harry raise an eyebrow in confusion she elaborated. "Don't you think his concern is bordering on unhealthy Harry?" She asked him. He seemed to think about it for a few minutes before finally answering.

"Well, I suppose you could say that but it is understandable, don't you think?" He quickly explained himself before she could say something. "Think about it Gabrielle, you have heard him telling all sorts of stories from his time in Lordran and his role in the First war against Voldemort. Have you ever heard him say something about a companion? Let alone a friend?" She had to shake her head at that. The only one he mentioned was his tutor, Quelana, was her name if she remembered correctly. But even when he was reluctant to talk about her, it had been clear that their relationship, if one could call it that, was that of a student and pupil. Harry seemed to pick in on her thoughts.

"He had Quelana, his mentor, but that isn't the same as a friend now is it?" Gabrielle agreed with that. "He knows that his concern for us might not be healthy you know." It was her time to raise an eyebrow. "After the champions got chosen we talked for a bit before I went to bed. He realized that his concern may be unhealthy. He knows we can take care of ourselves, he just wants to protect his friends because he never had someone to protect." As Harry put it like that she realized what he said was true. Yuri had never had friends or a family for that matter. No one to talk to, no one to go to for support.

"I was surprised to learn some of his concerns that night, Gabrielle. He doesn't consider himself human at all. All these things are new to him, all these feelings he probably has little to no experience with. I think he is confused more than anything, even more, I think he thinks he doesn't deserve them." He finished, this gave Gabrielle a lot to think about.

"Did he tell you all that?"

"No, but I could understand the hidden meaning behind the things he did tell me, Gabrielle." He started. "We have known him for over a month now, he is slowly but surely opening up. I can only hope he shares his thoughts and concern with at least one of us." He said before leaving her with her thoughts the join Fleur. She saw them chatting happily, this brought a small smile to her face while thinking over what Harry had said.

She mentally kicked herself for not coming to the same conclusion Harry had. Yuri had a lonely live before he came to Hogwarts. Merlin knows what he had to go through in the Undead Asylum. He often referred to himself as a 'corpse', something she absolutely hated. He didn't care for the insults that her Headmistress had thrown at him, Fleur had told her it looked like he agreed with her. And then it clicked with her too. Harry was right, Yuri didn't see himself worth of humanity, he considered himself a weapon, like so many others had in the past. She vowed then and there that she would do everything in her power to make him realize he was human. She vowed then and there that, if he ever wanted to talk, she would be the one to listen to him.

XXX

They arrived in their spot, Fleur saw her sister take out her Arithmancy homework as she took a seat against one of the few trees that littered the field. Fleur was about to turn to Harry to continue their training sessions before they could hear Yuri's heavy sigh.

"I understand that you don't need protection, you can take care of yourselves, all three of you." He started with his back towards them and his head hung low. Fleur could hear something akin to confusion in his voice, like he didn't know what to say. "It's just…" She heard him struggle to voice whatever he had to say. Both Harry and Gabrielle were listening to him intently too. "I've never had friends before, I have no idea how it works or how to act. I am concerned. I am concerned that I would lose you guys and end up alone again.." Fleur was left speechless at that, she could see that Harry and Gabrielle were too. She was sure all three of them heard the waver in his voice, like it pained him to admit his feelings out loud. Before any of them could say something he continued. "And I know that I have no right to feel that way, I am not even supposed to feel all of this. I am Undead, I am meant to fight, to kill. Not to feel, not to form friendships.." Again the conflict was clear in his voice. Fleur frowned at the last part. Is that how he thought they saw him? Did he think they saw him as a weapon too? She didn't know what to say, this was probably the first time he opened up completely, talking about what he was thinking, what he was feeling instead of concealing it away behind his mask.

She wanted to say something, reassure her friend that it was okay to feel concerned for a friend. That it was okay to feel that way. And she most importantly wanted to tell him that he had a right to feel, that he was more than a weapon to not only her but the Harry and Gabrielle as well. But she was so stunned that the words couldn't leave her mouth. She could hear him sigh again, but this time, it was a sad and defeated one.

"I'm sorry." Was the only thing he said before leaving the three of them alone in the spot where they had trained, had laughed together. This moment cleared something up for Fleur, although she was sure it also did for the two others. Their Undead friend had a lot of pent up emotions, emotions he believed he didn't deserve to feel, he couldn't feel because of his Undead nature. It was clear to her now that he felt undeserving of their friendship. She only hoped they could convince him otherwise before they lost him completely. She hoped at least one of them could provide him the comfort and a listening ear he so desperately needed.

**A/N: Hell everyone! I apologize for the long wait again but school has been really busy, leaving me with little time to write. From now on, I promise I will try to update bi-weekly, I will do my best but I can't be sure, school is drowning me in homework. I hope you liked this chapter, besides having little time to write, it took me a long time to write this one. I wanted to start preparing for the Fourth task, Building the Harry/Fleur pairing and give my OC some more character. **

**I know that a lot of people in the fanfiction community aren't a great fan of OC's, they often think they take away the focus from the main cast. I believe that an OC can be a healthy and interesting addition to a story if written correctly, hence why I spent so much time focusing and developing Yuri. I want him to be a character, not an overpowered cardboard box. He is one of my four main characters in this story, but that doesn't mean Harry, Fleur or Gabrielle will play a minor part. I intend to focus on all of them throughout this story. I wanted to convey in this chapter that Yuri has a hard time dealing with emotions and his struggle with his self-image. I hope I got the point across. **

**Lastly, I want to thank all of you for reading, following, favoriting and reviewing this story. I would've long given up on this story if it weren't for you all. So thank you again, be sure to leave your thoughts in the reviews and as always, have a great day! **


	11. Chapter 11

One week. One week had passed since they had last seen their Undead friend. Harry had searched for him everywhere he could possibly think of. From the dungeons of the castle to every single classroom on every single floor. He even searched the grounds surrounding Hogwarts, the gardens, the fields around the Black Lake. Fleur, Gabrielle and himself had one evening even decided to search the Forbidden forest hoping they would find him there. But he wasn't. It seemed like he had disappeared from the face off the earth.

It was Saturday morning so Harry did what he had done every single day before going to breakfast: Checking his friend's room to see if he had returned. He quickly made his way towards the room and opened the door. The room hadn't changed one bit over the entire week, which meant Yuri wasn't coming back here. After the second day Harry had guessed his friend had taken his leave, but that thought was quickly debunked. Most of his possessions, well the few possession Yuri had, were still in the room. Namely, his books and a wooden chest he didn't seem to be able to open.

Harry sighed sadly as he closed the door and made his way back to the Great Hall. He could somewhat understand Yuri's situation. He himself wasn't quite good with dealing with emotions either. But he knew it was important to talk to someone about it. He had Sirius to talk to whenever he felt like sharing something. _But then again, I'm not Undead like Yuri. _Harry silently mused. It had become quite clear to Harry that his friend was not used to deal with any kind of emotions, whether it be happy or sad ones. When they had first met, jokes were almost a foreign concept to the young man. Harry remembered how bothered he had seen when Fleur noticed his concern. He remembered how highly Yuri spoke of the three of them, like they were the most precious things to him.

_And that's exactly it. _Harry had already said so to Gabrielle: Yuri considered himself less than them. He had no clue how to deal with the things he was experiencing for the first time, the poor man believed he didn't deserve them. As Yuri had stated to the Headmaster, he believed himself a weapon, a tool of war, to be used as wizards and witches pleased. As Yuri had so eloquently put it: "I have no right to feel this way, I'm not even supposed to feel all of this." Harry finally arrived at the Great Hall and took his usual spot at the end of the table, waiting for his 2 female friends to join him.

Speaking of the French witches, the sudden disappearance of his best friend wasn't the only thing on Harry's mind. There was also a certain silver haired witch he couldn't keep out of his thoughts. The absence of Yuri had quite an impact on their little group. The three of them searched basically everywhere for him, multiple times. Fleur and him were usually together when they conducted these 'search parties', Gabrielle opting to go search on her own. Harry was very certain she did so with a purpose but couldn't quite prove it. Even when they were training or doing homework in their usual spot, Gabrielle kept to herself, reading the book Yuri had already translated or doing her homework, while Fleur and him kept practicing for the Tournament.

Their relationship had escalated a bit. Most of the awkward moments were gone, replaced by small and innocent flirting from time to time. Harry remembered when Fleur had showed him a combination of offensive spells he could use in duels or even other situation. She showed him how to combine stunners, hexes and curses, to keep your opponent on their toes. However during her little demonstration, instead of paying attention on how the spells were cast or how the effectively combine the spells, Harry was a bit focused on well Fleur herself. Her elegance in the way she casted spells, the way her hair waved through the air as she showed how to dodge and counter cast spells at the same time. If someone had told him then he had been entranced, he would have believed them. He had only eyes for her at that moment, and his mind was blissfully blank.

He had been embarrassed when Fleur picked up on his distraction all too quickly. He had thought she would have been angry with him, perhaps even disappointed. She had been neither of those, instead she playfully replied: "I see you are paying really close attention, Harry, you think you can tell me which spells I used?" Her innocent smile had told him that she knew he had paid attention, only not on the things he was supposed to. "C'mon let me show you again." She had added with a playful wink, causing him to blush. He had heard Gabrielle chuckle in the distance, indicating that she had seen it too how distracted he had been. This was only one example of the many other situations they had found themselves in. Harry wondered if Fleur only flirted back to entertain him or if she really meant it. He had no experience with things like this, he had no idea what signs to look out for to see if she was interested in him as he was her. The only thing he knew that despite his 'immunity' to the Veela charm, he was enamored with her. And not only because she was beautiful, which she obviously was. He had never seen a woman as beautiful as Fleur before. But it was also just how she was, she was just, Fleur. The playful, kind, caring, funny young lady. Someone who could listen to him when he told her something about quidditch, or about the things he went through in school, or his other interest. Fleur, who was passionate when she told him about one of her interests or her life in France and Beauxbaton. There wasn't really one specific thing he liked about her, he liked all of her.

Another new development, which was really sweet in his opinion, was the way how they greeted each other. They used to just say hello to each other, now however, Fleur had taken the liberty to envelop him in a hug as a way of greeting him. Now, he was usually opposed to anyone hugging him. Even when Hermione used to hug him back in the day he had stiffened up, feeling rather uncomfortable as he had never received a hug from anyone ever before. The Dursley's weren't the type of people to give him a hug. But he found that he didn't felt uncomfortable in the slightest the first time Fleur had enveloped him in a hug. He had stiffened up as usual the first time she did, as it was quite unexpected. She had apologized for not asking him first, which he waved of, telling her it was fine, just unexpected. All the hugs after that moment though, were quite nice. He couldn't quite put a feeling to it but he felt happy whenever she hugged him, and he gladly returned the hugs. She was taller than him, which meant his head was in a rather personal space. But Fleur didn't seem to mind, as she laughed every time he pulled away with a blush on his face. He also felt extremely warm whenever they hugged. Which made sense, he mused. Veela were often referred to as birds of fire, which would explain the unusual heat Fleur emitted when they hugged. Harry couldn't quite describe the heat either, it somehow felt like a fireplace but somehow much more gentler, if such a thing was possible.

He was shaken out of his reminiscing when he saw Fleur and Gabrielle entering the Great Hall, directly making their way towards him. Fleur ignored the lustful stares she got from the male populace of the castle while both of them also had to ignore the glares and snark whisperings their fellow Beauxbaton students and even other female students made. Once they made it to the table he and Fleur greeted with their usual hug while he greeted Gabrielle with a friendly 'Good Morning', which she returned, although it lacked her usual enthusiasm.

Something he had noticed over this past week. It seemed the disappearance of Yuri had made a bigger impact on Gabrielle than he had first thought. The first couple of days she was concerned, like her sister and himself. But after that she just became sad. Her usual wide smile never reached her eyes anymore. Her usual joking manner was all but gone, she had this concerned and somber look on her most of the time. Whenever she was reading one of Yuri's translated books she often stared ahead, drifting off to wherever her thoughts lead her, instead of focusing on the books in front of her. He saw every single day, when she entered the Great Hall, how her hopeful expression morphed into a disappointed one when she saw Yuri still wasn't back.

He had noticed that over the months, when he and Fleur grew closer, Gabrielle and Yuri kind of did the same. Whenever he and Fleur had trained for the tournament, Yuri would keep Gabrielle company while she did her homework, engaging in small talk, not to much as to not distract her, but Harry believe Gabrielle appreciated the company a great deal. Whenever Gabrielle had been studying for long periods of time, Yuri demanded that she held a little break, only so she could clear her head a little bit. They often had then little duels or were just content to sit on the bank of the Black Lake, enjoying each other companies. Or during meals, Harry had noticed how attentive she had been whenever Yuri told a story about his travels in Lordran, how she seemed to never run out of questions to ask about sometimes the tiniest of details. Often prompting Yuri to explain those in great detail, and every time Harry had noticed how she had hung on his every word. Or how eager she was to read that big book about Undead Yuri had. He had promised her he would translate it as quickly as possible for her so she could read it.

Fleur and himself had talked about Gabrielle's behavior before and after Yuri's absence. Fleur had indeed confirmed it that they had grown quite close. An amused Fleur had told him about how Gabrielle would talk about the things Yuri had told her, or the things she had read in that translated pyromancy book he had given her. It made sense, they concluded, Gabrielle had never had friends before, and was mocked due to her size. Fleur had said that Gabrielle didn't take the mocking quite well and that she craved for some friendship, and Yuri had given her that. "It seemed they have forged a very close friendship, Harry." She had said. "Quite a bit like how we have grown closer over the months, Non?" She added innocently, He had blushed at that but nodded. "Although, I think ours is becoming a bit more." His blush had deepened when she had said that with a wink.

And now, as the three of them ate breakfast, he shared a concerned look with Fleur, as he saw how Gabrielle barely touched her food at all. Yuri better had a damn good reason to leave them like this for a week.

XXX

Gabrielle followed her sister and Harry as they made their way towards their little spot at the Black Lake. She felt angry and sad and concerned, but mostly sad. She missed him, she missed Yuri. She missed their little talks at the bank of the Lake, she missed him telling his stories in Lordran, she missed his voice talking about nothing and everything as she was studying. She missed his mere presence. She was angry at him, even if only slightly, for disappearing like that. No warning, not even a little note, nothing. She was very much concerned for her friend, and it drove her crazy. He was her best friend for crying out loud, he couldn't just disappear like that without at least letting her know something. On the other hand, she kind of understood his inner turmoil. He was confused and afraid due to all these new emotions he was feeling, she understood. After what Harry had said she understood even better, he needed someone to show him he WAS human. To show him that no matter how confusing or afraid he felt of all these new experiences he felt, she was there for him. To show him he deserved friendships, and to show him just how much their friendship meant to her.

She sighed sadly, sat herself against one of the trees in the field and opened the pyromancy book he had given her. She smiled a bit when she remembered him giving it to her. He had asked the three of them who wanted to read the first book he had translated, without even asking Fleur or Harry if they wanted it, she had asked him if she could have it. He had smiled at her enthusiasm as he often did whenever she asked to explained details about Lordran or Spells he used. He had even promised her to finish translating the big book he had about Undead as soon as possible so she could read it too. She had been so happy she had done something that had surprised all four of them: she had actually hugged him. It had been a quick hug yes, but it was a hug nonetheless. She had felt him stiffen as she had enveloped him, she had apologized in a small voice. "No Problem, Don't worry." He had said. That day there had been some awkwardness between the two of them but the day after that, everything was back to normal. _Most likely the main reason he disappeared. _She sneered at herself in her head. She hadn't dared to hug him again after that and even asked Fleur for help. "There isn't really much you can do, Gabrielle. It seems our male friends aren't used to any form of physical affection." She had said. "Besides, he seemed to be already past it, have patience, Gabrielle, he'll come around. And if not, not everyone can be as affectionate as you." Her sister had added with a teasing tone. Gabrielle had pouted at that. It was true however, Gabrielle was a rather affectionate person. She sighed sadly again as she was brought back to the present day by her sister asking her something. She quickly looked up and pushed all thoughts and memories of Yuri to the back of her head.

"Do you want to accompany us to the Gardens, Gabrielle? We're going on a little walk." Gabrielle smiled at that. No matter how sad she had been this past week about Yuri's absence, the growing relationship between her sister and Harry was something that would always bring a smile on her face. She had had a front row seat to see how their relationship was developing. The awkward moments were replaced with lightly flirting, more hugging, more unconsciously hands laying on top of each other during dinner.

"Thank you, but I think I'm going to stay here, I have some homework I need to finish anyway." She answered. "Enjoy your time together though." She added with a wink, laughing as it made both of them blush.

"If you need anything, be sure to call for us, Gabrielle." Her sister asked with a rather concerned tone. Gabrielle know both of her friends were concerned with her. She hadn't really tried to hide her sadness and such this past week.

"Thank you, don't worry about me, I'll be fine." She said as convincing as possible. Fleur gave her one last look before both her and Harry walked off. As soon as they were some distance away, Gabrielle was sure she could see them holding hands, which made her smile again.

XXX

It may have sound strange to anyone else, but Yuri actually liked the silence that hung in the Undead Burg. He found it calming, an opportunity for him to gather his thoughts, banish the emotions that threatened to break through. The Undead Burg wasn't really nice on the eyes, but he didn't mind. The small houses were breaking apart. Most of the roofs were starting to rot away, so were the doors for that matter. Windows were completely gone and if not, riddled with holes. Even the once sturdy stone walls that provided shelter, a home, to countless of Undead and Humans branded with the Darksign, were crumbling away. The walkways were barely visible as grass and all sorts of weeds were growing between the stones. Most furniture inside the houses suffered the same fate as the roofs and the doors, rotting away due to being left unattended for centuries. No matter the state the town was in, Yuri felt at peace here. He had never lived here, not that he could remember anyway if he had. But in a way, it was the only place he could call home, that any Undead could call home.

He had come back here to escape from it all for a moment. When he had left the Asylum he had assumed things would have been much easier, much simpler. He would train to make up for the damage the Asylum did, figure out why everyone kept calling him the Chosen Undead, figuring out what it was exactly what he was supposed to do. And despite his promise to Oscar, he didn't plan on bothering with it. He was Undead, a corpse cursed to fight and to kill. A weapon used to fight wars. Expandable. Undead didn't make friends, let alone 'loved' ones as Oscar had called it. It was simply not in their nature. They may look human, act human, but they don't feel emotions. Or that is what he thought for the first 20 years of his existence.

Yet, back in Hogwarts, were three people who had turned his whole view of his very being, of his very purpose, upside down. Three amazing young people who had earned his trust in a matter of months. Three people whom he had forged friendships with, friendships he wasn't supposed to make in the first place. Three people who made him feel things he hadn't experienced before, feelings he shouldn't have either. The same people that had accepted him despite him being Undead, the same people he had left behind to travel back to the Undead Burg in the hope to make sense of everything. He scowled, glaring at the stone road he was walking on.

He was angry, another emotion he wasn't supposed to feel. He was angry with himself. He had thought that taking some distance away from the three of them would make him back like he used to. He thought it would put a halt to the concern and worry he felt. He thought it would stop the feeling of happiness he knew he didn't deserve whenever they joked around, or had a nice meal together. He thought by creating distance he would revert back to his old self, before the Asylum. The cold, calculating and fearsome Undead who had made it through the horrors of Lordran alive, the same one who survived the first war against Voldemort. It hadn't worked though, he had been here in the Undead Burg for over 3 days now, and those pesky feelings were still there.

Concern for Fleur and Harry because of that stupid Tournament. Concern for all three of them as the reality of him turning Hollow and killing them was a possibility right now. The pride he felt whenever Harry bested him in a duel, or successfully learned a new spell from Fleur. And happiness whenever he was with Gabrielle, whether it was keeping her company while she did her homework, or just their light conversations on the bank of the Black Lake. He was sure he could go on and on about all these things he felt, some of them he could name, others not. But they were still there and he hadn't gotten rid of them as he hoped he would.

So on his second day in Lordran he had decided to take action. He had planned on returning of course. Deep down he was certain he could never turn his back on them anyway. So he had decided to get the three of them a little gift, as protection during the Tournament and, well, as extra protection for Gabrielle, if the need should arise.

He already had everything he needed, he had put their gifts in his bottomless bag he carried with him. He could go back right now, he wanted to go back right now. But he was afraid, another one of those stupid emotions he wasn't supposed to feel, especially fear. An Undead who is afraid is usually doomed to perish. And yet he was, afraid to return, afraid to see their reaction. He had only spent 3 days in the Undead Burg, but time flows different in Lordran, there is no telling how much time has passed for them. Had he been wrong in wanting to sort everything out on his own? Perhaps, it is what he needed, what he wanted, but in hindsight, it hadn't helped him one bit. Making up his mind, he took a bone from his bag and prepared himself to go back to Hogwarts, Picturing the spot between the Black Lake and the Forbidden forest clearly. And with a blinding white light surrounding him and his vision, he prepared himself for what was to come.

XXX

Gabrielle was doing her homework, like she had told Harry and her sister she would do. Yuri's pyromancy book lay next to her as she planned on continuing reading it once she was done. However, she was quickly brought out of her concentration as a blinding white light appeared not to far in front of her. She immediately became alert, disregarding her homework and reaching for her wand. As the white light diminished her eyes grew wide as she saw Yuri standing in front of her. Still clad in his charred robes, with his sheathed sword on his left hip, gloved left hand resting on the hilt of said sword and his shield strapped to his back. She was at a loss for words for a moment, although she quickly wiped away the single tear that had managed to roll over her cheek.

Finally he laid eyes upon her, his eyes widening this time. It seemed he wanted to greet her but the greeting died on his lips. No matter how much she wanted to cheer and to hug him for finally returning, she didn't do either.

"YOU IDIOT!" She yelled as she stomped her way towards him, her small size probably didn't make her intimidating but she wasn't trying to be. She wasn't exactly angry with him either, well perhaps a little bit. She was mostly sad he didn't seem to trust any of them enough to talk, he didn't seem to trust her enough to talk about the things he felt. She saw him flinch slightly at her tone. "Do you have any idea how worried we've been. How worried I've been?!" Regret and shame immediately marred his features. Right now she just wanted him to understand that they had been worried, that she had been worried. "No warning, not even a note! You have been gone for 1 week, Yuri! 1 week!" His mouth was slightly open in a silent O, as if he just realized how long he had been gone for. She crossed her arms over her chest and stared him down, which again was probably not intimidating in the slightest but she didn't care. As he made no effort to start speaking she urged him on. "Well? Where were you?"

"I, uh, went back to Lordran. The Undead Burg, to be exact." He responded. She frowned at that. Lordran? Why whould he go back there? He continued explaining as he saw her frown. "I went there because I needed some time to think, some time alone to give everything a place." To Gabrielle it seemed he hadn't quite achieved that but kept her mouth shut and let him continue. "Everything became a little too much for me to handle so I figured I could think more clearly in an environment I was familiar with." He sighed in desperation.

"Look, I'm sorry for leaving so suddenly. And I'm sorry for being away so long. I actually only stayed 3 days in Lordran but time flows differently there, I had no idea how long I would be gone for to you guys. But I just had to, I don't know, figure things out." He said defeated. Gabrielle's face softened at that. He was genuinely sorry for leaving them like that, the regret was clear as day. However, Gabrielle also noted the defeated tone in which he had said it, it looked to her that whatever he tried to accomplish in Lordran, didn't turn out like he had hoped to.

"And did you?" She asked, although it was more an offer on her part to listen to whatever was bothering him. Yuri let out a sigh at that and shook his head. She stepped closer, making sure not to touch him no matter how much so wanted to, to give him some sort of physical comfort, remembering his reaction to her hug clear as day. Her getting closer, however, made him look directly into her eyes. "What's wrong?" She asked in a whisper, so silent she was afraid he hadn't heard it.

"Everything is so damn confusing, Gabrielle, all these emotions, all these feelings, it's overwhelming."

"I understand, I know they can be, Yuri, but you don't have to run away from them. You don't have to hide them." As he continued to look into her eyes, Gabrielle saw how confused he was about anything, she had never seen him so vulnerable before.

"But I'm not even supposed to feel them, I'm not even supposed to form friendships, Gabrielle. I don't deserve them, I'm Und.." Gabrielle decided to end that sentence and cut him off.

"Like hell you don't." She started powerfully, surprising him. She carried on however. "Of course you are supposed to feel them, Yuri, everyone has emotions. They can be scary sometimes yes, but we shouldn't run away from them. We have people we can share them with." She said emotionally, willing him to understand. He remained silent so she continued. "I won't say I know how your life has been before you came here because I don't. But never say something like that ever again, Yuri. You do deserve friends, you do deserve the friendship you share with Harry, Fleur and myself." He hung his head, he still didn't believe her. "It is only normal for you to feel concerned about them, I am concerned too. This is perfectly normal Yuri, there is no need to run away from it. We both know they can handle themselves, but we worry anyway, and that is what makes us human."

"But.." He tried again, albeit in a weak voice.

"No buts." She answered him. "No matter what people made you believe, no matter what was expected of you, those things are long in the past, Yuri. You DO have emotions and you DO deserve to feel them. You DO have friends who care about you and you DO deserve them, and don't let anyone tell you otherwise." She again said forcefully, hoping he would finally understand it was completely normal. He sighed.

"It's difficult though, I've no experience with these things." He said again in a defeated tone.

"And that's okay, Yuri. I'll be here to help you, to guide you through everything." She meant every single word she had just said. "If you'll have me." He gave her a small smile, one which she immediately returned.

"Okay, and thank you." Gabrielle's smile grew brighter. He was willing to try, he was done running away from it, she could see it in his eyes, the determination. "And again sorry for disappearing so suddenly." He apologized again.

"You are forgiven, Yuri, I understand, I really do." Her little smile never leaving her face, Yuri was back, and she was happy beyond words. "Just don't do anything like that ever again."

"I won't." He promised before he did something completely unexpected. He stepped forward and enveloped her in a hug. It didn't take long for her to return it. "Thank you." He whispered again before letting her go. She wouldn't admit it, but she was slightly disappointed it had ended so soon. As soon as their little moment had ended, she could hear 2 familiar voices growing closer.

Gabrielle chuckled lightly as she saw the surprised faces of Harry and Fleur upon seeing their Undead friend. The surprise on their faces were soon replaced by joy, however, something she very much shared.

"Yuri! You're back!" Harry exclaimed enthusiastically.

"I am." Gabrielle noted a change not only in Yuri's voice, but in his whole demeanor. The uncertain, kind of broken voice was gone, gone were the eyes full of confusion and fear. Gabrielle smiled again, something she noted she had done quite a bit these past minutes, but she just couldn't help herself. Yuri was back, and he accepted her offer for a listening ear. He accepted her help, to guide him through everything he had problems with, to show not only himself but the world that he was so much more than a corpse who could fight, and that made her more happy than anything.

"Where have you been, Yuri?" Her sister asked.

"I went back to Lordran for a bit, The Undead Burg to be exact." At the questioning glances of both Harry and Fleur he elaborated. "I needed to figure some things out, some time alone to make sense of everything." They both understood exactly what he was talking about.

"And did you? Anything we can help with?" Harry asked while motioning between himself and Fleur. Yuri shook his head lightly but with a smile.

"I didn't find what I was looking for there. But someone.." He glanced at Gabrielle and gave her a thankful smile, one which she gladly returned. "Someone showed me that it's normal to feel, it may be scary, but I'm not alone. Not anymore." She saw Her sister looking at her, silently asking if she was the one he talked with. She nodded which got her a smile from her sister.

"And don't you forgot it, Yuri. You are not alone, we are your friends." Harry said as he stepped closer and laid his hand on Yuri's shoulder. A friendly sign to make sure he won't forget it they were there for him.

"I won't." He nodded thankfully at Harry, prompting him to get back to Fleur's side, content that he made his point across. "I did however, do something else while I was in Lordran, by the way." Everyone looked back at him, Gabrielle didn't know about this. "I got you three a gift."

"Yuri, you didn't need to." Gabrielle started but was quickly shushed by him.

"I know I didn't need to, but I wanted to." He took out 3 gloves from his bag that was attached to his right hip. Gloves that kind of looked familiar. "These are pyromancy gloves, only basic ones, I might add, I didn't have the chance to enchant them yet. But I wanted to get them for you as extra protection during the Tournament." He said towards Harry and Fleur as he both gave them one. "And I figure you could use the extra protection just in case." He said to her, handing her the last one, she gave a small smile as thanks.

She saw Both Harry and Fleur immediately try them on so she did the same. As Harry was looking intently on the small yellow reddish flame that was now in his left palm, Fleur and herself were confused as theirs turned blue. Suddenly a stinging pain shot through her left hand, she believed Fleur had the same problem as she heard her yelp, they both tugged the glove of. Yuri's face was contorted in confusion.

"What happened? What's wrong?"

" I felt a stinging pain in my hand as soon as I had it on." She explained. Her sister nodded in confirmation.

"I felt the same thing." Yuri's brows furrowed.

"That's most peculiar indeed. I've never seen that happen before." He seemed deep in thought while holding out his hand to take back the gloves, they both gave it back. "You told me Veela have an affinity with fire right?" Fleur nodded.

"Yes, we have. We are pretty much resistant to any kind of fire, except dragon fire and the Fiendfyre curse." Yuri nodded at that, still in thought.

"Yes, then why isn't it working?" He asked more to himself as he now started pacing back in fort, something he was fond of doing when he was thinking, she had noticed. "Perhaps it's the wrong conduit for Veela? Perhaps you need another material? Or perhaps your magic resists the foreign magic?"

"It's okay Yuri, I appreciate the thought nevertheless." Gabrielle said, Fleur nodded, she to was grateful for the gift, even though it wasn't working like it was supposed to. Yuri gave one small glare to the gloves as if they had offended his very person before putting them back into his little bag.

"Don't worry, I'll find a solution. I already have a few possible theories that could explain why it did what it did." He focused his attention back on Harry. "Now, I brought you this to help you defeat the dragon you'll have to face in the first task." Harry was still kind of amazed at the pyromancy glove on his left hand, he looked up to Yuri though.

"What do you mean? I thought you said I couldn't learn Undead magic and vice versa?"

"Well that is partially true, I can't learn the magic you do. Neither can you learn the Soul Magic I do, as that is way to dangerous for you guys to perform." The little warning didn't go unnoticed to the three of them. "However, Pyromancies and miracles aren't harmful to humans in the slightest, you are perfectly capable of learning it." Harry smiled.

"You mean that?"

"Of course I mean it."

"Thank you, Yuri."

"Don't mention it, I told you I would help you. Speaking of, Fleur, do you already have a plan to take on your dragon?" Fleur nodded.

"I do, I'm planning on using my Veela magic to try and put it to sleep." Yuri nodded at that.

"Smart plan, one of the weakness of dragons are that they are really weak minded, well most of them are anyway. They are very vulnerable to the mind arts."

"One of the weaknesses?" Harry asked. Both Gabrielle and Fleur listened intently too, it seemed Yuri knew what he was talking about when it came to dragons. Gabrielle thought he was perhaps a bit too familiar with them than she would have liked.

"Yes, they are ferocious and dangerous beasts, but they are not indestructible. First, as I already mentioned, is their weakness to the mind arts, there are exceptions to this, but I'm pretty sure those kinds won't be used for the tournament. Secondly, their wings, a grounded dragon is usually a dead dragon, if not severely weakened. The place where their wings meet their body is extremely vulnerable to attacks, so is their neck. They don't have as much scales there to protect them from curses. Thirdly, the eyes, it is possible to blind a dragon with a well-aimed curse to the eyes, however, I won't recommend it that much. It will severely anger it, and they still have the sense of smell, dragons have an extremely good sense of smell so it will still be able to find you, despite it being blind." Gabrielle really wondered how he knew all this, just how many dragons had he encountered? "And lastly, of course, the thing I've already told you about. The very same thing Gwyn used against the Everlasting Dragons eons ago, the very same reason why I got you a pyromancy flame." Realization dawned on the three of them.

"Lightening!" Harry was the first to exclaim. Yuri smiled and nodded.

"Exactly, lightening spells are able to pierce even the toughest of scales, severely injuring or even killing the dragon."

"Just how many dragons have you faced Yuri?" Gabrielle dared ask, Yuri just shrugged like it was no big deal.

"A couple of them, if I had to guess around 3. A couple of wyverns too and a lot of drakes." He casually said like it was no big deal. Dragons were arguably one of the most dangerous creatures to their world.

"Wyverns and drakes?" Fleur wondered out loud.

"Yeah, drakes are descendants of dragons, usually have blue scales, have two legs rather than four and breathe lightening. While wyverns also only have 2 legs, there other claws are attached to the top of their wings, enabling them to grab onto buildings and stuff. Very annoying to deal with." He again explained casually like it was the most normal thing to face. Only now Gabrielle started to wonder just how much he had faced in Lordran. The three of them were a bit stunned into silence before Harry broke it.

"Thank you, Yuri."

"No problem, Harry, I promised I would help you, I am a man of my word."

"How about we go get dinner now? It's getting late and I'm getting hungry." Fleur suggested. It was indeed getting late, only now did Gabrielle realize it was already getting a bit darker. The rest of them agreed with Fleur and made their way towards the Great Hall.

As they made their way towards the great hall, she glanced next to her. Yuri was steadily walking next to her. She unconsciously smiled again, he was back, and he was okay. She would help him deal with everything, she would show him it was okay to feel. She would be there for him, whenever he needed her. He looked at her and smiled too, silently mouthing 'thank you' again. _I'll always be here for you, Yuri, whenever you need me, you are not alone, not anymore._

**A/N: Welcome back everyone! I first want to apologize for the long wait, my life has been pretty crazy these past few months. I have been pretty busy with personal stuff and then the whole corona stuff happened so yeah, pretty busy.**

**However, I'm back. I don't know how often I will be able to update this but I'll do my best, I definitely haven't given up on this story, so don't worry!**

**Now this chapter is an important one, as you have seen, it marks a big change in the relationship between Harry and Fleur and Yuri and Gabrielle. Harry and Fleur are growing closer while Yuri has finally accepted some help to deal with everything he has been feeling. I'm not going to lie, this took a while to write because I wanted it to be perfect. I hope it is to everyone's liking.**

**Thank you for everyone who favorited, followed and/or commented on my story. I never thought my story would get this popular, I had hoped for perhaps a dozen reads every now and then but the reviews I've received have been truly amazing, so thank you all of you.**

**As always, if you want, leave your thoughts in a review and have a nice day! And stay safe out there!**


	12. Chapter 12

Harry had barely slept last night. Today was the day of the First Task and he had spent all the night tossing and turning in his bed. He was nervous, but like really nervous and even a bit afraid. No matter how many life threatening situations he had faced in the past, he was still human and they were forcing him to face a dragon. Yuri, Fleur and himself had been training constantly for the past weeks. Fleur teaching him rather nasty offensive spells while Yuri taught him to cast Lightening spells with the Pyromancy Glove.

Casting with the Pyromancy Glove still felt a bit weird to Harry. Usually when he casted a spell with his wand it felt natural, like the power came from within him, from his core if there was such a thing. With Miracles however, like Yuri had explained, the power came from the Flame in the glove. The first week he had a lot of trouble even conjuring the lightening. Yuri had sat with him and explained him how to focus on the flame: One had to be calm and collected to conjure it, otherwise no lightening would appear at all.

Which had happened the first week to Harry's great frustration. No matter how hard he concentrated he couldn't cast it. "I think it is time we take a little bit of a break, Harry, getting frustrated will only hinder your ability to cast the spell." Yuri had said, leaving him in the care of Fleur again who continued teaching him hexes, curses and jinxes.

In the beginning of the second week he had finally been able to conjure lightening in his hand. He felt the sheer power of it in his hand, waiting to be released. Yuri however had ordered him to not throw it just yet. During the second week Yuri had taught him how to control the Lightening. He had Harry shorten the bolt, enlarge it, diminish it in power, increase it in power and so on. "You are doing really well, Harry, you have control of it now, next week we'll focus on throwing it and perhaps even learn the more powerful version: Great Lightening Spear." Yuri had praised him at the end of that week.

And indeed, in the third week, Yuri and Harry had stood side by side, casting and throwing Lightening Spears all over the little meadow they were in. They improved the throwing distance and accuracy, Yuri even used himself as target once for him to practice. Something Gabrielle had quickly shot down after a Lightening Spear came real close to hitting him. At the end of the Third week, after he had perfected casting Lightening Spear, they had talked strategy. "It is very good that you can cast the Lightening spell now, Harry, and as proud as I am now, Dragons are still ferocious beasts. I think it is best to have a backup plan, perhaps even a backup plan for the backup plan." Harry had been really touched by what his friend had said. No one had ever said before they were proud of him and he couldn't even put into words how much that meant to him.

So they had formed a plan, of course, with the help of the two French Veela. They had decided that it would be best for Harry to already have his Pyromancy Glove when he entered to arena. It was very possible the Judges would conduct points for that but they reasoned better losing a few points than being eaten by a dragon. Second, Fleur had suggested Harry using his amazing flying skills to use in the ring. She had suggested she taught him the summoning charm 'Accio' so he could summon his Firebolt if the need would arise. Yuri had thought that over for a couple of minutes before eventually agreeing. "That is indeed a very solid backup plan, I reckon they won't give the dragon free mobility. It will be grounded or at least be restricted in movement to some degree. The broom could give Harry the advantage of speed." He had said. The summoning charm wasn't that difficult of a spell as he managed to learn it to cast it consistently in little under two days.

But right now, he was getting ready to go to Yuri's room to collect him so they could have some breakfast. However, as soon as he left the Gryffindor Common Room, Yuri was waiting on him, casually leaning on a wall with his arms folded in front of his chest. As soon as Yuri saw him he nodded friendly and pushed himself off the wall to join his friend's side.

"Good Morning, Harry, How are you?" Harry noticed the concern in his voice. He gave his friend a weak smile.

"Okay I suppose, barely had any sleep last night though." He admitted openly. Yuri put a sympathetic hand on his shoulder to try to offer some comfort.

"I understand, no worries, Harry, I am sure you'll do fine. Even more, I know you'll do more than fine. Gabrielle, Fleur and I believe in you, my friend."

"Thank you, Yuri." Harry said rather emotionally, to know that people were proud of him, believed in him, was something he never thought he would have. Yuri just smiled as they made their way towards the Great Hall in comfortable silence.

"Harry, Yuri!" Someone suddenly exclaimed, both of them turned around to see the three Gryffindor Chasers make their way over to them, with Katie in the lead. "How are you two doing today?" She asked as soon as they had caught up.

"Good morning, Katie, Alicia, Angelina." He started by greeting them. He saw Yuri just nod his head in greeting. Which is something he had noticed. Not a lot of people actually greeted Yuri but those who did only received a nod in return from his Undead Friend, never a vocal greeting. Harry even noticed that besides himself, Fleur and Gabrielle, Yuri never talked to anyone else unless absolutely necessary. "I'm doing okay, a bit nervous but otherwise fine." The three chasers gave him a sympathetic look as they joined them on their walk to the Great Hall. Katie turned to Yuri.

"How are you, Yuri?" Yuri raised an eyebrow in surprise or confusion, Harry couldn't really tell.

"I'm doing fine, Miss Bell." Came his short but, as always, polite answer. While Harry was engaging in some small talk with the other two chasers, he noticed that Katie was trying to do the same with Yuri.

"So if I may ask, Yuri, what are you going to do during the Task?" Harry nearly chuckled out loud when he saw the rather annoyed look on his Undead friend's face. A look that went completely unnoticed by the Chaser. Harry had to contain his amusement all the way toward the Great Hall.

XXX

Fleur was pretty sure she had never been this nervous in her entire life before. Today was the day of the First task, the day she had to face a dragon, something that quite honestly, scared her. No matter how prepared one is to face a dragon, they still remain dangerous and ferocious beasts. She was currently seated in her usual spot in the Great Hall to have breakfast, although she didn't really have an appetite at the moment. Her Sister was seated in front of her, regarding her with a look that contained both concern but also supportiveness.

"You'll do great, Fleur, I'm sure of it." Fleur smiled at that. The both of them had always been close, counting on each other for support while the people around them shunned them, mocked them or straight out insulted them for who they were. Since coming to Hogwarts, however, they had grown even closer if such a thing was possible. "You have practiced a lot, Fleur, you can do this, I know you can."

"Thank you Gabrielle." She replied. She would show the world what she was capable of, she would make her sister proud, her parents proud, she would make her two friends proud.

Now that she paid attention to her surroundings she noticed that her two male friends weren't here yet, which was very unusual of them. It seems that Gabrielle noticed the same.

"Where are they now?" Thinking back to the other time both of them had been first in the Great Hall, that time when Harry had told them what they had to face in the tournament.

Just a few minutes after her sister had asked that question the door opened, revealing Harry and Yuri, in the company of the Three Quidditch players. It seemed that Harry was in a pleasant friendly conversation with two of them. Yuri, however, seemed to be annoyed to no end. A rather funny sight that made her chuckle lightly. She could even hear Gabrielle chuckle too. Although when she looked at her sister, there was a look there she hadn't seen before, a look she couldn't quite place either. It looked like Gabrielle was observing the Quidditch Player's every move. Fleur made a mental note to ask her about that later.

They saw the men bade their farewells to their company and make their way towards them. It looked like Harry was teasing Yuri along the way.

"C'mon Yuri, she only wanted to make some small talk." Yuri groaned.

"I was not interested in small talk, she talked about the most mundane things. Not that I could say anything If I wanted to, she just kept rambling on." Fleur heard him reply which made both her and her sister chuckle. "Besides, talking to her didn't feel the same like talking to you or Fleur. And especially not like talking to Gabrielle." That last comment went right over Harry's head as he gave his friend a friendly pat on the shoulder before taking his usual seat beside her. Of course, not before giving her a quick hug. The comment however didn't went unnoticed by her, and one quick glance at her sister told her it didn't went unnoticed by her sister either. In fact, fleur was pretty sure she saw a feint blush across her sister's cheeks. _Interesting indeed _She mused silently. This was definitely something she would pay attention to more.

"Not happy about the company you were in Yuri?" Fleur asked to lift the mood a bit, more precisely to get their mind of the tournament for a moment. Yuri's response was a groan, making the three of them laugh.

"She was trying to be nice, Yuri. You saved her life after all." Harry said, still very much amused.

"If everyone I save reacts like that it might be the last time I saved anyone." He replied sarcastically which made all three of them laugh. Fleur had noticed that Yuri's sense of humor was often very sarcastic in nature. "I know she is your friend, Harry, but I'm sorry I'm not good in this stuff when it isn't the three of you." Harry waved him of.

"You don't have to apologize, Yuri, I know Katie can be much sometimes."

After that they ate while engaging in talk about strategy, going over their plans again to make sure they would be okay. Soon after Breakfast was done the Headmaster announced that everyone should make their way towards the arena where the first task would take place while the contestants had to go to a small tent to receive their objective. Before they departed ways Yuri spoke up.

"You both have trained hard these past weeks and I am sure you two will do great. I probably won't mean a lot coming from me but I'm proud of both of you." He started. Fleur had noticed that since his return he seemed a lot more open with stuff like this, especially when it was only the four of them. "But no matter what happens in there, think of your safety first." Fleur was touched, beside her parents and her sister there weren't a lot of other people who cared about her like that. "Stay safe and may the Flame guide your way." He finished while giving Harry a friendly hug. He seemed to hesitate to do the same to her but she shot forward and embraced him anyway. Her sister both gave them a hug as well and told them to be careful as well and with that they parted ways. Yuri and Gabrielle making their way towards their seats and Harry and Fleur followed Professor McGonagall towards the tent.

XXX

Yuri was usually calm and collected. He had taken down beings some would consider gods. He had faced against gargoyles, giants, dragons and other monstrosities of all kinds. He had witnessed war first hand, seen his brethren die in the midst of battle. But never in those situations had he felt disturbed or even slightly nervous. Never had he known fear before this very moment. Because right now, as he was walking beside Gabrielle, knowing that two of his friends had to face a dragon, he was very much afraid. There was so much that could go wrong, dragons remained unpredictable ferocious beasts, adding the fact that they would most likely be in a confined state made their behavior that much more unpredictable.

He was almost certain Gabrielle picked up on his nervousness as she gave him a weak smile. It was a touching attempt to console him but it was clear she couldn't hide her fear either. They were both very concerned for what was to come.

"Aren't you going to introduce us, Gabrielle?" An unknown voice asked behind them. Both he and Gabrielle turned around. He saw a very nicely dressed man and a woman who was almost a carbon copy of Fleur and Gabrielle. Gabrielle immediately smiled upon seeing them.

"Maman, Papa! What are you doing here?" she exclaimed as she rushed towards what Yuri now knew were her parents. He saw them exchange hugs in greeting, he very wisely kept his distance, not wanting to intrude on a family moment. He noticed however that the father kept a close eye on him. Perhaps it was because he was already on edge because of the Tournament but he immediately assumed a neutral and emotionless stance.

"Your father and I decided to surprise you and Fleur." He heard the mother reply. "Now are you going to introduce us to your friend?" Gabrielle immediately motioned him to come closer.

"Maman, Papa, this is Yuri." He nodded politely in greeting and offered his hand.

"It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Yuri, my youngest daughter has told us a lot about you." He threw a questioning glance to Gabrielle who looked away, probably in embarrassment. "I'm Appoline Delacour, Gabrielle and Fleur's mother." She introduced herself, politely and warmly. She seemed really nice to him. Something that rather surprised him.

"It's an honor to finally meet you, Mrs. Delacour." He answered politely. "I am Yuri." He concluded that if Gabrielle had told them a lot about him that they probably knew what he was. Appoline gave him a friendly smile.

"I am Guillaume Delacour, Gabrielle and Fleur's father." The man, apparently called Guillaume introduced himself. Yuri clearly noticed the lack of warmth in his voice compared to the greeting of his wife. Yuri shook the hand that was offered to him but Mr. Delacour quickly let go, earning him a glare of both his wife and his daughter. Yuri immediately knew why he was reacting like that. They knew he was Undead, and he was clearly not happy that his daughters had spent their time in the presence of an Undead. He politely greeted the man anyway, this was Fleur and Gabrielle's father, it would do him no good to turn hostile towards him. Besides, Yuri was kind of used to this behavior anyway so he didn't really mind. He only hoped that it wouldn't create a rift between the family Delacour.

"Pleased meeting you, Mr. Delacour." The only thing he received was a nod, gaining the man two more glares from the women in their presence.

"You catch up with your daughter, Guillaume." He heard Appoline say. Yuri saw the underlying meaning. She was trying to diffuse the situation. Her husband was clearly not happy that he was here. So as Gabrielle and her father walked in front of them, engaging in what Yuri could tell was a very heated discussion in French. Mrs. Delacour and himself stayed a bit behind, walking towards their seats to watch the first task.

"I apologize for my husband's behavior, Yuri." She started to say, Yuri immediately waved her off.

"There is nothing to be sorry for, I understand. In fact I'm quite surprised you didn't act the same way." Before she could say something however, Yuri continued. "I can promise you however that I mean no harm towards you or your family, Mrs. Delacour." She looked quite surprised at his last statement.

"Please Yuri, don't ever think I consider you a danger to either myself or my family. Both my daughters have told me a lot about you, Gabrielle more so than Fleur, and they had only positive things to say about you." That made sense, after all, he and Yuri had spent a lot of time together lately. Whenever Harry and himself hadn't been training they would sit together and do her homework while Harry and Fleur were doing Gods know what. "Besides, I would really be a hypocrite if I were to judge you just because of what you are, Yuri." _Of course. _Yuri suddenly thought. _She is Veela too, just like her daughters. _

"You are Veela too then?" he asked. She nodded in response.

"I am, so I understand what it feels like to be judged for what you are. I thought my husband would know better after being married to me after all these years but apparently I was wrong." It sounded to Yuri that she was rather disappointed in her husband.

"Don't be angry at your husband, Mrs. Delacour. I understand, don't worry, it's only normal after all the tales the Ministry wove around Undead. Our reputation definitely doesn't help either." He said. It seemed like Appoline wanted to refute his point but quickly interrupted her. "Please, the last thing I want is to create a divide in your family, Mrs. Delacour." Her face softened at his last statement.

"Don't worry, Yuri, you won't. I'm sure Gabrielle has already knocked some sense into him." Both of them looked in front of him to indeed, see Gabrielle heatedly talking to her father, most likely about his behavior previously. "So how did you four meet?" She asked, Yuri had to smile a little at that, as he retold how he met his friends from the beginning battle with the Death Eaters all the way to the present day.

XXX

"What was that all about, Papa?" Gabrielle asked heatedly at her father in French, as she folded her arms in front of her. His behavior towards Yuri was inexcusable, to say she was less than pleased was an understatement.

"Gabrielle, I was just.." He tried to justify himself but she didn't even let him.

"You were just what? What were you trying to achieve by behaving like that? You didn't even greet him properly." Guillaume Delacour knew that both his daughter and his wife were angry at him. But they didn't understand, he had heard the stories about the Undead on his work. He worked for the French Ministry of Magic and he had heard what Undead were capable of, he was just trying to look out for his family.

"I'm just trying to look out for my family, Gabrielle, is that so hard to understand? I'm being cautious." He justified himself, this only made Gabrielle angrier. He was glad there weren't other people around because his daughter was almost yelling at this point.

"BEING CAUTIOUS OF WHAT? MY BEST FRIEND?" He winced but she continued. "I've written both you and Maman countless of letters how happy I was to have met Harry and Yuri. I've written how glad I was to have Yuri, my first ever best friend who didn't care that I still look like a 12 year old. I've told you how excited I was for you to meet him, and then you treat him like that?" Guillaume lowered his head.

He indeed remembered how fondly Fleur and Gabrielle had spoken about their new male friends. Fleur about Harry and Gabrielle about Yuri. And of course, he as a father immediately assumed all sorts of things. His daughters had befriended the Boy-Who-Lived and an Undead, they couldn't have chosen a more dangerous duo. And then there was the fact that Fleur had been writing separate letters to Appoline, which meant that she was troubled by something, and again his mind went all over the place. He was their father, he only wanted what was best for them.

"I've heard the stories about Undead in the Ministry, Gabrielle, and they aren't pretty." His daughter gave him a deadpanned look.

"So you rather believe some stories about Undead your colleagues and friends in the Ministry tell you instead of your daughter's own personal experience with the man?" She countered. Guillaume realized he had just dug the hole he was in deeper. _Merde. _He cursed to himself.

"Of course not, I was just being cautious."

"Well, you shouldn't be Papa. He is a kind man and wouldn't hurt a fly unless provoked. He is funny and keeps me company throughout the day. He is my best friend , so you better apologize to him after the task." And there it was again, Gabrielle speaking highly of Yuri like she had done so many times in her letters. The tone in which she had said that last statement was one he knew very well, a tone that his wife often used in little fights too. His daughter was now walking in silence beside him, not paying him any mind.

XXX

Harry and Fleur followed Professor McGonagall in relative silence. Not really uncomfortable silence, they both were just extremely stressed for what was to come. Just before they entered the tent they looked at each other and give the other a reassuring smile and nod.

As soon as Harry entered the tent he could see that Ludo Bagman was already there, holding some sort of pouch in his hands. The other two champions were also already present. Cedric was sitting on one of the couches, Harry couldn't help but notice the slight shake in the Older Ravenclaw's hands. Viktor Krum, however, stood with his back towards them, not giving a simple care in the world, that's how it looked to Harry. _Perhaps he is just very good at hiding his nerves? He is a professional Quidditch player after all. _He reasoned.

"Ah, the two final champions have arrived, it is time. Gather around." Bagman exclaimed, sounding way to cheerful in Harry's opinion. Harry and Fleur remained by each other's side while Cedric and Krum made their way over. "In this pouch is the clue to what you will face out there, your task is to collect the Golden egg, ladies first." He opened the pouch slightly and offered it to Fleur. She took out a small green dragon with the number 2 around its neck.

"Ah the Welsh Green, you'll go second, Miss Delacour." Informed Bagman. Krum took out the Chinese Fireball and would go third while Cedric got the Swedish Short-Snout and had to go first. Harry noticed briefly that he went a bit pale at the thought, he couldn't blame his fellow champion.

"And that just leaves our youngest champion." Bagman offered him the pouch. As he retracted his hand from the pouch, he could see a greyish looking dragon that was starting to spew small breaths of flames.

"The Hungarian Horntail, a feisty one indeed. You will go last, Mr. Potter." He still thought that Bagman was way to cheerful for sending teenagers against fully grown dragons, but Harry held his tongue. Bagman had informed them they would prepare everything and would call out the names whenever they had to go in. Cedric went back to sit on the couch he was seated on earlier. Looking intently at the little dragon in his hand while seemingly murmuring to himself. Krum turned his back on them again, apparently not keen on having a conversation.

Harry and Fleur still stood next to each other. If someone were to give him the option between facing those dementors again or facing this dragon he would choose the dementors any day. At least they could be dealt with by a simple Patronus charm. He unconsciously started to pace around.

"Hey, we'll be okay." Came Fleur's soft but reassuring voice, he turned around to face her, she had stepped closer too. "We have trained hard, Harry, we'll be fine."

Before Harry could respond however, they called out Cedric's name. They could see how he took a deep breath, probably to keep his nerves under control and then stepped outside the tent.

30 minutes later they could hear the crowd cheer loudly, indicating that Cedric had completed the task. Harry's nerves immediately skyrocketed again, it was Fleur's turn. He faced her, concern evident in his voice.

"Please be careful out there Fleur, I can't lose you." She stepped closer and immediately threw her arms around him. Now, they had hugged quite a lot over the time they had known each other. But they had been short and brief hugs, in greeting. This, at least to Harry, felt like so much more. It felt like both of them were clinging to the other, afraid to let go. Eventually after what felt like hours, Fleur pulled away but still had her arms around him, they were still incredibly close. So close that Harry could feel her breath against his cheek.

"I will, Harry. You too, please, I can't lose you either." Before Harry could respond, Fleur leaned slightly forward and pressed her lips gently against his. Even if it was just for a couple of seconds, Harry felt like he was in heaven. "Now Is perhaps not the time but after the task I really want to talk." She said seriously but in a really low voice. The only thing Harry could do was nod, as he was still recovering from the small kiss they had shared. Not soon after, Fleur was called to enter the arena. "Good luck." He whispered her before she disappeared behind the flaps of the tent.

XXX

They had eventually found their seats. Appoline was seated next to Yuri, with Gabrielle on his other side and Guillaume next to his daughter. While they had made their way up here, Yuri had told her how he met Harry and her daughters and she had to admit, it was a rather interesting tale. Especially the way how he arrived here at Hogwarts. He had also told her what they did in their free time for these past months. She noticed that Yuri focused on the things that happened since he arrived at Hogwarts. Not once did he mention his life before. Which was only normal, she reasoned. They had only met barely 2 hours ago. But she also knew that the life of Undead was rarely a happy one. She had heard to stories her husband had told her, of course. And she had also read the very few chapters one could find in a book about dark creatures. They were branded as highly dangerous, vicious killers. She had only seen the exact opposite in Yuri. In fact, she had observed the interactions between him and her daughter and it looked like Gabrielle was really comfortable around him. Something she had never been in the past, except around her parents of course.

Truth be told, she couldn't be happier. She always knew her daughters were rather lonely in school. Both of them had only each other, they didn't have friends back in Beauxbatons, she knew this, it was the same when she attended school. But to see her two daughters finally making friends made her the happiest mother alive. And if Fleur's letters were anything to go by, there might even be something more going on between Fleur and Harry. She couldn't wait to meet the young man.

"He made a lot of mistakes." She was brought back from her internal thought by Yuri's voice. "He tried to conjure sheep, probably intended to trick the dragon in mistaking it for food, but we are dealing with protective mother dragons here, they don't care about food." He elaborated. "He also targeted the most protected parts of the dragon." Now Appoline wondered just how he knew so much about dragons. "I still can't believe they would put teenagers against dragons." He sighed disappointedly.

"You seem to know a lot about dragons, Yuri, may I ask why that is?" She didn't want to prod into his private life, she was merely curious. Gabrielle had heard her question but didn't react.

"Lordran is a dangerous place, Mrs. Delacour, let's leave it that." He answered politely. She smiled lightly at him, understanding that he didn't want to go into detail about it. "Look, it's Fleur's turn." He said pointing towards Fleur who was indeed walking through the flaps of the tent, entering the arena.

Appoline had mixed feelings about her eldest daughter participating in the Tournament. She was, of course, very proud, but on the other hand, she was also extremely worried. The Tournament was known to be dangerous. However, she understood why Fleur had wanted to enter and had supported her fully. No matter how worried or concerned she was, she was first and foremost, incredibly proud. It seemed that the young Undead beside her had picked up on her sudden change of mood.

"Don't worry, Mrs. Delacour, we have trained a lot these past months, we have back up plans just in case. Fleur also has a very strong plan to get past the dragon."

"Thank you Yuri."

"No need to thank me, Mrs. Delacour, I am merely stating facts. You can be very proud of your daughter." She was. She saw him briefly looking at Gabrielle with a little bit of a teasing smile. "Both of your daughters of course, we can't forget little Gabrielle now, can we?" Appoline had to chuckle lightly at that, especially when Gabrielle playfully smacked Yuri on the arm for calling her little.

Appoline could immediately guess what her daughter's plan was, as she felt her daughter releasing her allure, full power at that. Resulting in every boy wanting to get closer to the sides of the tribune to get a better look at her. Of course, not all of them, the teachers weren't affected, so wasn't her husband. But what surprised her the most was that the young man beside her wasn't affected as well. He just sat there, watching Fleur as she focused every bit of her magic to put the dragon to sleep.

"If I may ask, Yuri, how come you aren't affected by my daughter's allure?" She kept her eyes on the arena of course, watching how her daughter dodged the attacks of the dragon. Attacks that were becoming weaker and weaker as the dragon became more tired. Yuri briefly looked at her, as if he was surprised at her questions. Appoline could see that Gabrielle was listening in too.

"Undead have naturally pretty good defenses against the mind arts. I still feel Fleur's allure pull at me though." Appoline could see Gabrielle's slight alarmed look when he said this. _Interesting, perhaps there is more going on here. _She frowned internally. "But it doesn't really do anything for me. You see, I'm Undead, we lack the, uh, let's say urges others have." Appoline had to hold in a chuckle, the poor man was blushing like crazy, clearly uncomfortable that such a thing came up.

"So you don't have hormones is that what you mean?" He nodded.

"That is correct, Mrs, Delacour. I feel the allure but there is nothing there to activate if that makes sense?" Both Appoline and her daughter nodded, Her husband seemed to listen in to the conversation too but didn't react. "Although I still disdain their lack of self-control." Now that got the attention of all three Delacours sitting around him. "Harry isn't Undead and he is perfectly capable of controlling himself, even when Fleur releases her allure. We have done it multiple times during our training, to test how much power she would have to put into it. And not once was Harry reduced to a stuttering mess like most of the male population here." Gabrielle nodded, confirming what Yuri had just said. With this knowledge, Appoline couldn't wait to meet the boy who had stolen the heart of her eldest daughter. The group had gotten silent again, continuing to watch how Fleur slowly but surely tired out the dragon.

XXX

Harry was nervously pacing back and forth when Fleur was inside that arena against the dragon. Especially when the commentator said things like: "Oh that was a close call." Or "Smart idea, pity it didn't work." The moment, the kiss, they shared moments prior was also still lingering on his mind. She wanted to talk after the task. He had noticed that over the months their relationship had evolved significantly. From complete strangers to friends. And yet, lately, he felt it was more than that. He liked Fleur but more than a friend._ Was that what she wanted to talk about? _He asked himself. He had noticed these past week that she had responded in kind, the hugs in greeting and goodbye, the perhaps awkward but sweet moments they shared from time to time. The hand holding whenever they went on a walk. Small things like that, gave him hope that she in fact felt the same.

He was soon shaken out of his internal thoughts as the audience sheered and clapped loudly. _She did it._ He thought relieved. He always believed she could do it of course, he was just worried. His nerves were still in full swing though, because after Krum, it was his turn. Daring to steal a glance at the Bulgarian seeker, Harry saw that he remained undisturbed. _He has nerves of steel. _He thought.

When the Bulgarian seeker eventually entered the arena, it was with guns blazing. Harry could hear how the commentator described Krum's actions. He could also hear the very loud roaring of a very angry dragon. Harry had to give it to him though, his aggressive style sounded like it worked because barely 20 minutes later the audience erupted in cheers and applause.

He stood before the flaps of the tent doing a last check up to make sure he had everything. His wand in his right hand to summon his broom, the Pyromancy glove already on his left hand. He took a deep breath to steel is nerves as the commentator announced him.

XXX

Fleur watched with worried eyes how Harry entered the arena. A 14 year old boy forced to face a dragon. She was standing on the side lines, close to the exit where the champions would leave through after the task had been done. She could see the determined look in his eyes, his unwavering bravery. Those were one of the many things she liked so much about him. She saw him waving his wand in the air, the same movement they had practiced for days before. It looked to her he wasn't taking any chances and was immediately summoning his broom. _Good, the less risks he takes the safer he'll be._ She thought to herself.

If someone would have told her she would worry about someone like this, she would have hexed them into oblivion, but now, after meeting Harry, she just couldn't help herself. She cared about him, she cared more than normal friends should care for each other. Which is why she wanted to talk to him about it. By observing him these past weeks she was certain he felt the same, and she was getting a bit tired of dancing around each other. She liked their new relationship, oh she really did. But she wanted it to become real, established.

She saw as he carefully stepped forwards, checking around him as much as possible, wand and his gloved left hand at the ready. For such large creatures, dragons could be really sneaky when they wanted to be. The fact that the arena was littered with big rocks and such wasn't helping either. Not much later, the Hungarian Horntail announced its presence as it roared loudly. Without hesitating harry rolled away from the beast's maws and released a lightening bolt from his left hand. It slammed into the dragons neck, making it roar, most likely in pain, giving Harry enough time to escape from the corner he had been trapped in.

At the sight of Harry casting the Lightening bolt, the whole audience became silent, in awe, because most of them had never seen something like that before. The teachers however, that is the few she could see from where she was standing, were sending disapproving glares to the place where she assumed Yuri was seated.

She saw how Harry kept up his advance, slowly but surely getting close to the golden egg he was supposed to retrieve. He kept sending lightening bolts at the dragon, making it roar in either anger or pain, Fleur didn't know. The dragon suddenly took to the air, making it easier for it to dodge Harry's lightening bolts. Fleur knew quickly what it was about to do however, it was preparing to fly over and breath fire all over the arena. She saw how Harry stopped throwing the lightening and instead did the summoning charm one more time before making a run towards the golden egg.

The dragon was returning with an open maw, fire already forming in it. When suddenly something zoomed right above her head. It was Harry broom, and judging from his reaction, he had seen it too. Fleur saw how he quickly pocketed his wand, grabbed his broom and sped away just in time to avoid the all consuming flames of the Hungarian Horntail. He held the broom with his right hand and continued casting lightening bolts with his left hand.

One of the bolts had struck the dragon right between where its wings meet its body, it must have damaged something because the beast pummeled towards the ground all the while roaring. Harry didn't let his guard down however and quickly sped towards the golden egg, grabbed it with his left hand and zoomed back up to a safe distance to be sure.

She could hear the commentator announcing the end of Harry's task, thanking everyone for watching. Harry quickly made his way towards her, still on his broom with the golden egg tightly clutched against his chest. Her own golden egg was sitting by her feet because as soon as Harry landed she ran over to him and enveloped him in a hug, a hug he gladly returned. Harry's golden egg made it a bit weird but she didn't care, and he didn't seem to care either. It was a hug that said: "I'm glad you are okay, you did well and I am proud of you, but most of all I'm happy you are okay." After what felt like an eternity but in reality was only a couple of minutes, they pulled away. Harry smiled at her, she would never tire of seeing him smile. She was pretty sure her smile reached beyond her eyes, but she didn't care, she was just so happy everything went well.

Before either one of them could say something, she heard an unknown voice inside of her head. It was like nothing she had every experienced before and actually gave her a little bit of a headache. Judging from not only Harry's reaction but all other people around her, she wasn't the only one who heard it.

"You call that a fair fight, Mortals?"

**A/N: I'm sorry for the long wait again but this chapter took me ages to complete. I think I rewrote Harry's task like half a dozen times, as compensation I give you one of the biggest chapters I've written yet, with over 6,5k words. This chapter really marks the 'AU' aspect of this story, as you may have seen from the little cliffhanger.**

**I also want to thank everyone who has followed, favorited and/or reviewed this story. Honestly, I never thought I would receive such a large amount of support for this story when I first started writing it, so thank you everyone. We are sitting over 200 followers which is almost insane, so thank you. **

**As this is my first fanfiction I've written I would love feedback, about anything really. So if you want, leave your thoughts in the reviews and as always, have a nice day! **


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